Mercedes boss Toto Wolff issued caution as a “performance picture” of his team has is still unclear, praising Formula 1 rivals, including Red Bull, for their performance in testing.
The German marque has been the centre of attention this winter, after having developed its new V6 hybrid power unit on the basis of a loophole found in the new technical regulations.
A higher compression ratio can be reached, but will retain the 16:1 ratio that is required in ambient temperatures, as per the rules.
This has led to discontentment from other engine manufacturers, as it has been predicted that the PU will be able to generate enough extra horsepower to lap the Albert Park Circuit at the first Grand Prix 0.3s a lap faster than its rivals.
Wolff was bullish and confident about the PU’s legality, and beseeched other manufacturers to “sort your s***t out,” but has also warned that the outcome of the shakedown week in Barcelona two weeks ago is not painting a full picture.
“It’s another example where so much is being made up in performance differentiation in a certain area,” the Austrian explained.
“I’ve seen, in terms of pure performance on a lap, and even over several laps, it’s looked like that there is no one that it is really collapsing.
“I’m really happy how it went for us, in the sense of interaction, power unit deployment and the chassis.
“But having said that, we had a solid three days, that is something to build upon, but we don’t have really a performance picture yet.
“Because we haven’t seen Max [Verstappen] driving the car fast, and we haven’t seen McLaren and Ferrari doing what they can do.
“So I would carefully refrain from saying that was great for us. We simply don’t know.”
![Isack Hadjar [pictured] has deferred to Max Verstappen for Day 2 of the F1 pre-season test. Image: Red Bull Content Pool](https://www.motorsportweek.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Isack-Hadjar-Red-Bull-test-2026-1024x576.webp)
Wolff praises the ‘good job’ Red Bull has done as Mercedes’ competition is eyed
Prior to his axing from Red Bull, then-Team Principal Christian Horner boasted the recruitment of around 200 people from Mercedes’ High Performance Powertrains department to its own in Milton Keynes.
When asked about this, Wolff did not directly respond, but acknowledged the apparently positive performance the team put in at Barcelona, again warning that everything is speculation until the lap times that really matter are counted.
“When it comes to Red Bull, I think they’ve done a good job,” said Wolff.
“[Isack] Hadjar did 107 laps, I believe, on the first day, and was running reliably, so you’ve got to give them that.
“And the rest, we will see when the stopwatch actually comes out.”
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