Toto Wolff dealt brutal four-word verdict with Mercedes chief’s Verstappen hopes in ruins | F1 | Sport

Former Mercedes technical chief Paddy Lowe has warned Toto Wolff that ‘it might get worse’ for the Silver Arrows following a dismal start to the 2024 campaign. The eight-time world champions entered the year with aspirations of fighting Red Bull, but have been left in the dust by the top three after six races.With one-quarter of the 2024 season in the rearview mirror, Mercedes have collected a measly 64 points. At the top of the standings, Red Bull have already amassed 239 points with Ferrari sitting in second on 187 and McLaren trailing in third place with 124.These tallies mean that the Brackley-based outfit are closer to fifth-placed Aston Martin and even the struggling VCARB outfit in sixth than they are to the top three teams. This has been a brutal wake-up call for Wolff and his two drivers, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, who have been forced to settle for battling in the lower points-paying positions.Discussing the team’s ability to bounce back from their current struggles, Lowe told Motorsport.com: “You may or may not get there. It may get worse. This is the nature of the sport and why it is so fascinating to watch as champions come and go.”Empires rise and fall, and I always thought Formula 1 was a bit like that, a bit like the Romans and the Greeks. There are lots of components to that and complacency can be one of them, and we saw that with the Romans.”We were very happy in 1992 at Williams to beat McLaren, who had seen unbeatable for some years, and you come out and you beat them, and you can’t believe it to start with, but something has changed and lots of things can contribute to it.”Even more frustrating for Wolff and Mercedes is that McLaren and Ferrari have taken steps forward and are now closing in on Red Bull. If the Silver Arrows were in this conversation then they would be able to market themselves as a viable next destination for Max Verstappen, but as things stand the Dutchman will be staying put for 2025.Wolff views Verstappen as the ideal replacement for the Ferrari-bound Hamilton and the Dutchman has made it clear that he would consider moves, but only to a car that could help him win races. With Mercedes wildly uncompetitive relative to the top three teams, their hopes of signing the three-time world champion are in tatters.



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