Toto Wolff has shot down any rumours that Mercedes might have issues with their power unit ahead of the 2021 Formula 1 season. The team principal admits that the Silver Arrows have worked hard to make progress on cooling issues that previously affected them, and they remain confident that there will not be any major concerns going forwards. "We didn't have particular problems on reliability on the power units," Wolff told RacingNews365.com among others when asked about possible reliability concerns. "Obviously if you do long runs at peak power, there will be a lot of learning [about] what gives up first, but it's all under control. "Cooling very much plays a part of that. We have had years where we struggled for cooling, where our pre-season simulations didn't reflect precisely what was happening on the track later and I think we made a big step." Whilst an engine freeze will come into effect ahead of the 2022 season, there will be other new regulations that were previously planned for 2021 but were pushed back due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. However, Wolff believes this is not too dissimilar to the balance required in other years when it comes to development plans. "This is a question you need to find solutions [for] every single year," Wolff explained. "How you balance the current car and the development time you want to give it versus next year's car. And for 2022, it becomes even more of a critical topic because of the scope of changes. "There will be teams that focus on 2022 from early on, and other teams that will see great opportunity for the 2021 world championship. For us it will be crucial to take the right view, to take the right balance on how we want to balance development for next year."
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