Mercedes’ chances of winning the championship are not good at present, team principal Toto Wolff admitted, but could change quickly if they can unlock more performance from their car.
“I think we’re on the back foot,” assessed Wolff at the Australian Grand Prix. “If I look at it from a mathematical standpoint, in probability, I would probably say that the odds are two to eight.
“But this is motor racing and in motor racing, anything can happen. Teams can DNF and if we unlock the potential of the car, we are right back in the game.
“So, as a motor racer, I would say it’s probably 40-60. As a mathematician, the odds are worse against us but third race into the season, we’re not going to write the title off. It’s just the current status quo, we are seven-tenths off.”
Mercedes still have fundamental problems with their car, largely to do with ‘porpoising’, which they are seeking to solve. “There is a gremlin in our car, a few gremlins that we haven’t found…