Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff says he expects the W14 car to perform stronger in Austria this weekend compared to Canada.
Last time out at the grand prix from Montreal, Lewis Hamilton took a third-place result, marking his third podium of the year.
Mercedes is continuing to develop its new package that was introduced last month and is expected to unveil another large update at the British Grand Prix in July.
Although George Russell failed to finish the race in Canada, Wolff asserts it was a positive outing for the team.
“There were plenty of positives to take from the last race in Canada,” he said.
“Although we didn’t get both cars to the chequered flag, a podium was a solid result and we saw encouraging signs from our updated package.”
This weekend sees the second sprint event of the year take place in Austria, with two qualifying sessions and two races forming a hectic schedule.
As it continues to understand more about its new development direction, Wolff is confident that the W14 will be stronger this weekend compared to Canada.
“Austria is always a special weekend, as it’s my home race and I have good memories from the track; both with the team but also from my early years racing there and teaching as an instructor,” he said.
“It’s also the second Sprint of the season so it will be interesting to see the impact it has on the weekend, at a more traditional circuit.
“It’s a short lap in Spielberg and looks straightforward on paper; several long straights broken up by a range of slow, medium-speed and fast corners. But it’s a challenging one to put together and get right.
“We will aim to build on the momentum we have generated over the past two races and continue our positive trajectory with the car.
“It’s a venue where the W14 should perform better than in Canada, but we won’t take anything for granted. As always, we will be working hard to maximise our performance and deliver strong results.”
Discussion about this post