Kimi Antonelli’s victory in the Japanese Grand Prix brought an important result for Mercedes, but team principal Toto Wolff is not fooled by the podium. He analyzed the weekend with surgical precision, laying out everything that went wrong. His words paint a picture of a Mercedes that wins, but does not dominate.
Wolff starts with the most obvious problem: Kimi’s start
First of all, Wolff commented on Kimi Antonelli’s tricky start:
“A messy start, but these guys are still learning to drive with the automatic gearbox! We need to teach them how to release the clutch slowly, calmly, and not too quickly. But then he was fast, and yes… it seems rather worrying. You know, I thought ‘not again,’ because obviously we’re not providing them with the simplest tools. Our starts have been fairly mediocre and we need to improve this aspect. In that case, the driver had a huge influence on the car not getting off the line. It seemed good with wheel slip, but it’s not fast! But in the race, he made his way forward, and at the crucial moment he was really quick. We were able to extend his stint by a lap, which ruined George’s race and made the difference.”
Analyzing George Russell’s struggles
Wolff then explained why George Russell was never really in the fight:
“I see it in a somewhat mixed way. The mistake we made collectively really put George in difficulty with the car. Already from Q1 it was no longer competitive enough, and today he had to fight with that as well. With equal cars, it would have been a tight race, but when it came time to go fast, we had to decide to protect the position from Leclerc. Meanwhile, Kimi was setting perfect laps, and that made the difference. But George didn’t have a perfect car.”
Technical issues that affected the race
The team principal then went into detail on the technical problem that affected the race:
“It was a bug in the electrical software system; we thought we were giving him an advantage by using energy, but what resulted was a power drop that slowed the car. This is where he unexpectedly lost position to Leclerc, so we didn’t exactly cover ourselves in glory with George’s race.”
Energy management and the rivals’ growth
Wolff concluded by analyzing the new hierarchy in energy management:
“Yes, absolutely. And this is, I think Andrea mentioned at the start of the season, that as a factory team you have a small advantage at the beginning, and the other teams are learning how to use energy effectively. Today it was clear that we couldn’t get past the McLarens because they understood everything, as did the Ferraris, thanks to the right strategy and optimal energy management. And I think that’s nice to see.”
Toto Wolff’s words show a Mercedes that can still bring home results but lacks true superiority. Between uncertain starts, software bugs, and energy management inferior to rivals, the team still has a lot to fix. Kimi’s victory is real, but it does not hide the challenges faced. Wolff says it without filters—and that makes his message all the more impactful.
Toto Wolff’s post-race analysis of the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix therefore serves as a wake-up call for the Silver Arrows. Based on the content of the software bugs and start-line struggles identified at Suzuka, the upcoming break will be vital for Mercedes to refine their “tools” before the championship battle heads to Miami.
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