Wolff says car ‘capricious’

Mercedes boss acknowledges performance issues

Mercedes lead both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships, but team boss Toto Wolff admits they head to Japan scratching their heads over the inconsistency of their performances.

Lewis Hamilton finished second at the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday to open up a 34-point lead on main title rival Sebastian Vettel, who came home fourth having started from the back of the grid.

Max Verstappen took the race win having passed pole-sitter Hamilton at the start of lap four and then pulled away from the Brit with ease.

Vettel was also quicker than Hamilton for much of the race.

Hamilton won in Singapore after Vettel, Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen crashed out at the start, and he was fortuitous in Sepang when Vettel was unable to set a time in qualifying due to engine trouble.

The teams head to Japan with Wolff conceding all is not well at Mercedes despite leading the way in 2017.

“Full credit to Red Bull and Ferrari for their performance, but we have underperformed in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur – this is what we need to concentrate on,” he said.

“I think we have built a points advantage to Ferrari in the last two races because of them shunting out in Singapore and Sebastian’s engine problems here in qualifying,” Wolff added.

“We need to understand why we underperform on certain circuits and in certain ambient conditions.

“I think we have a capricious car that has a very narrow operating window with the tyres. Dipping in and out of the window is the fundamental story of 2017 for us.”

Wolff did also defend this season’s Mercedes car, which has won nine of the 15 races of the year to date.

“We must not forget we are talking about the car that leads the constructors championship and leads the drivers’ championship – it is not a lame duck,” he added.

Picture: Getty. The Mercedes has a very narrow operating window with the tyres, according to team boss Toto Wolff.