F1 News: Toto Wolff Drops Bombshell After Monaco Upgrades - "Still Nasty"

Mercedes' team principal Toto Wolff highlights the persistent issue with the W14's rear, indicating that despite recent upgrades introduced in Monaco, the vehicle requires further improvements for optimal performance.

Toto Wolff, the authoritative figure leading Mercedes' team, recently shared a fascinating revelation about the W14's performance. He mentioned that even after the car received substantial upgrades in Monaco, the vehicle's rear continues to trouble drivers. This comes as a surprising confession, given the high expectations from the improvements introduced in the Principality.

The team's decision to deploy these upgrades in Monaco didn't occur by chance. Mercedes had initially hoped to implement their season's first crucial upgrade at Imola. However, the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix's cancellation due to severe flooding led the team to recalibrate their plans. Consequently, they chose Monaco, a tricky circuit for testing new parts, to introduce their upgrades.

Amid these changes, drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell showcased commendable performances. The duo secured the fourth and fifth positions, respectively. Although Russell regretted missing a potential podium spot, Hamilton shared an overall positive sentiment about the upgrades' impact on the W14.

Despite these advancements, the car continues to pose challenges. Wolff expressed his concerns about the car's persisting issues. 

“The car felt together, which is important, but it’s still a bit nasty on the rear – so that’s something which we need to dial out of the car for the next few races,” Wolff admitted to the press at Monaco.

“But we have a new baseline and that’s important to say: ‘Okay, this is what we have now.’ We’ve taken questions off the table where we weren’t sure of, be it the front suspension or the extravaganza of our bodywork. So, let’s work from here.

“We’re good at grinding away and the work that was done in the factories to bring that update here to Monaco from our team, it was really a big effort.”

The Spanish Grand Prix offers the team an excellent opportunity to evaluate the upgrades' real-world performance. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, a familiar testing circuit in Formula 1 with a conventional layout, is a more suitable environment to collect valuable data. As the team examines their new parts' performance against factory simulations, they are aware that understanding the new performance level will take more than just one race.

“I think Barcelona is not enough,” Wolff continued.

“I think we need to collect data. That’s why we put it also here in Monaco, and to collect further analysis which we will do in Barcelona. The next one, Montreal, is a little bit of an outlier again.

“But over the next races hopefully we can really increase the performance of the car. But it’s not going to suddenly be right there.

“That’s why I’m actually pleased with the time gap that we had in Monaco. It was always a mediocre track for us, so that’s okay.”