Toto Wolff admits Helmut Marko is ‘not wrong’ with bleak Mercedes verdict in Hungary

Follow us on Google Discover

Toto Wolff has admitted Helmut Marko was ‘not wrong’ when the Red Bull motorsport advisor gave a bleak verdict about how Mercedes will fare in the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Silver Arrows have headed to the Hungaroring this weekend hot off of claiming back-to-back wins. George Russell capitalised on Max Verstappen and Lando Norris crashing to steal the win at the Austrian GP. Lewis Hamilton also won a record ninth British GP at Silverstone.

It marked the first time the Brackley team won successive Grand Prix since the late stages of the 2021 season. Taking to the top step of the Silverstone podium also saw Hamilton end his own 945-day wait for another victory. Now, the 39-year-old is at another of his playgrounds.

Toto Wolff agrees with Helmut Marko that Mercedes should struggle in the Hungarian GP

No driver has won the Hungarian GP more often than Hamilton, who has won eight times at the Hungaroring. But Red Bull motorsport advisor Marko doubts that Mercedes will emerge as his team’s biggest threat this weekend and Silver Arrows chief Wolff has agreed with him.

Marko suggested ahead of the Hungarian GP that Mercedes would not be the biggest threat for Red Bull in a ‘normal’ race. The Austrian claims the hotter conditions at the Hungaroring compared to Silverstone will reduce the Silver Arrows’ strengths and will see them fall back.

READ MORE: Five unforgettable Hungarian Grand Prix including Alonso and Hamilton’s spat

The Hungarian GP is expected to be the hottest race of the Formula 1 season so far, whereas rain influenced the British GP. So, if Mercedes can overcome the blistering conditions and be a threat for a third successive win, Wolff feels it will prove the progress his team have made.

“The doctor is not wrong,” Wolff told OE24. “But if we prove the opposite, then that would confirm the positive development we are having.”

Mercedes are off the pace in qualifying and race simulations at the Hungaroring

The Hungarian GP can play into Mercedes’ hands this weekend as the tight and twisty layout of the Hungaroring requires high downforce set-ups. While Mercedes did win the British GP with Hamilton, the Silver Arrows have largely struggled at high-speed tracks like Silverstone.

But Wolff has agreed with Marko that Mercedes are unlikely to challenge Red Bull given the hotter conditions at the Hungarian GP. The Silver Arrows also only set the fifth and seventh-best qualifying sim runs in FP2 and were half a second slower than McLaren’s Lando Norris.

Race runs were also not a great sign of things to come for Mercedes at the Hungarian GP on Friday. Hamilton had the C5 soft tyres for his race sim and averaged a 1:24.796 lap. Russell averaged a 1:24.403 on the C4 mediums, on which Sergio Perez was the fastest at 1:23.939.