Mercedes, another failed F1 season. The 2024 season can hardly be called a good championship for the Brackley team. On the contrary, it’s yet another year adding to recent disappointments. The current regulations have been in place in the top motorsport category since 2022. Since then, the German team has only achieved four victories: the first in Brazil in 2022, none in 2023, and three wins in the current season in Austria, Great Britain, and Belgium. Without a doubt, things seem to be improving.
However, just when the W15’s competitiveness seemed up to the challenge, the German cars’ performance took a significant downturn at the end of the summer. McLaren, Red Bull, and especially Ferrari made an additional competitive leap that Mercedes could not match. Toto Wolff, co-owner and team principal, has accepted this reality and stated that the focus of work has shifted to 2025 for this season. According to the Austrian, there is a chance to perform well next year.
While all teams can start working on the 2026 project from January, with almost entirely new regulations coming into effect that season, Mercedes’s goal for the last championship before the new regulatory era is one: to win or at least contend. This target is shared with other teams, those mentioned above, which, frankly, currently seem much more prepared. In the last three races—Las Vegas, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi—as well as the Sprint Race in the Arab region, the team will aim to give its all, continuing to test the car on the track and laying solid foundations for the W16 project.
F1, Mercedes Didn’t Have Time to Look for Their Desired Driver
Hamilton won’t be there anymore. Recently, we reported on his desire to join Ferrari. Lewis can’t wait to step through the gates of the Maranello factory to start this new adventure, which could turn out to be successful. Christian Horner also believes this, convinced that the timing of the Briton’s move to the Italian team could be perfect. Indeed, Maranello is on a strong upward trajectory: currently contending for the Constructors’ Championship, and next season, with the SF-25, could be a serious candidate for both world titles. This is the objective.
Without the seven-time F1 world champion, Mercedes won’t be the same. A partnership ending after 12 years of collaboration, during which the Briton became the most successful driver of all time. In his place comes Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The 18-year-old from Bologna is incredibly talented, but he will have to prove it on the track. Alongside George Russell, he’ll need to gain a lot of experience, which, at the moment, is almost nonexistent, limited to a few free practice sessions and some tests. Wolff has placed a lot of trust in him and thinks very highly of the young Italian.
Recently, he made some statements explaining the somewhat bold decision to put a young, inexperienced driver behind the wheel of the next German car. Toto is articulate: he almost always knows what to say and can convey his thoughts with great media skill. Hamilton’s departure came as a bolt from the blue. The call from Lewis and the private meeting between the two left the Viennese manager in disbelief, as he himself recounted at the beginning of the season.
Toto Wolff sensed something, like a good sleuth, and this impression was reinforced by calls from Carlos Sainz’s father and other drivers expressing interest in the Mercedes seat. Additionally, Fred Vasseur had not responded to one of his messages, an unusual event since it had never happened before. This is why that “we need to talk, Toto” from Lewis on the phone sounded like a farewell. The disappointment was strong, also because Lewis Hamilton’s decision came before knowing if the W16 could be competitive. A decision, as the saying goes, “not to be taken personally: it’s just business.”
A journey that will forever be part of history cannot end on a sad or bitter note. Friendship goes beyond business. Toto Wolff is resilient and has come to terms with it. However, one aspect bothered him: the timing of the goodbye did not allow the team principal to find an adequate replacement. And here we return to Antonelli. Mercedes could have aimed for Carlos Sainz. The two sides sounded each other out for a long time, but the terms of the deal didn’t satisfy either party. However, the Ferrari driver Wolff wanted was another.
Toto Wolff would have decisively aimed at Charles Leclerc to replace Hamilton or at another young driver with more experience, like Norris. The missed opportunity to negotiate is a blow to Mercedes, given that these drivers had recently signed contracts. Is Antonelli merely a stopgap? To be honest, yes, and it couldn’t be otherwise, considering the limited F1 know-how of the young man from Bologna. But this isn’t necessarily a negative aspect. It’s plausible that Wolff said something like this to him: “You know, Kimi, we would have preferred Charles, Lando, or Max, for obvious reasons. However, since we can’t reach them, do you feel up to giving it a shot?”
Russell might feel somewhat overshadowed. After years of waiting at Williams and Bottas’s departure, the Briton has proven to be up to the task. He’s a great driver. But maybe Mercedes doesn’t see him as a potential champion, that individual capable of offering that “extra something” and carrying the team forward. If that were the case, the team would have courted Verstappen for months or considered others, giving them the team’s helm. Let’s hope George can make the team rethink this, or that the extra spark for the future may come from the Italian Kimi himself.
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