Toto Wolff stated that Max Verstappen was too fast for the Mercedes team during the Sprint Qualifying at the Red Bull Ring.
The weekend started with Red Bull’s home race for the third Sprint weekend of the season. The Mercedes team faced tough competition from their rivals heading into this weekend. However, Verstappen managed to surpass everyone else and secure pole position for the Sprint race. Now, Toto Wolff, the head of the Mercedes team, admitted that the Silver Arrows were lacking speed compared to the 26-year-old driver.
To begin with, the Austrian billionaire expressed his happiness to be at his home race of the season. He also mentioned that Mercedes was confident in their ability to challenge Verstappen for pole position in the Sprint Qualifying.
However, Wolff confessed that the reigning world champion was simply too fast for them during the session. Verstappen pushed himself to the limit and claimed pole in the Sprint. Wolff also acknowledged the impressive performance of McLaren, who were right behind Verstappen.
Lewis Hamilton had a disappointing race on Friday. The seven-time world champion couldn’t keep up with the pace of Verstappen or the two McLaren drivers. Wolff attributed Hamilton’s poor start to a moment when he went off track, describing it as a “rally-like” lap that ended his chances in the session.
Furthermore, Wolff stated that the Sprint race on Saturday will likely not have much on-track action. He believes that the race results will likely reflect the positions from the Sprint Qualifying, as drivers will avoid taking risks to preserve their cars for the main race qualifying session.
Undoubtedly, Toto Wolff’s team has work to do after the Sprint Qualifying. Hamilton and Russell will be looking to make progress in the Sprint race on Saturday. However, they face a challenging task in trying to defeat drivers like Verstappen throughout the entire weekend.
