Toto Wolff has declared that Mercedes' car is the strongest it's been all season ahead of the final two rounds in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. Mercedes and Red Bull will continue their intense fight for both world titles at the all-new Jeddah Corniche Circuit this weekend, with little to separate the two teams. Max Verstappen holds an eight-point advantage over Lewis Hamilton in the Drivers' Championship, while Mercedes lead Red Bull by five points in the Constructors' standings.
"It gives us strong momentum"
Following back-to-back victories for Hamilton in Brazil and Qatar, Mercedes boss Wolff is in a bullish mood. "We are all excited to still be in the fight at this stage in the season. It's a privilege and a testament to our resilience when we see where we stood in the early summer," Wolff commented in Mercedes' preview for the Saudi Arabian GP. "Last time out we saw a faultless drive by Lewis in Qatar, commanding the race from start to finish, and a strong recovery for Valtteri [Bottas] before the unfortunate puncture took him out of contention. "The car has been performing well recently and is probably in the best place it has been all season, with the drivers confident to push it to the limit. "That's encouraging for the final races and gives us strong momentum to take forward."
A new challenge in Jeddah
The Jeddah street track is set to be one of the fastest on the F1 calendar, with an average speed of more than 250km/h predicted, while there are 27 corners for the drivers to get to grips with. Wolff is looking forward to the challenge, which he described as "high risk and reward". "Jeddah is another completely new challenge [and] an all-new track to get to grips with," he said. "A lot of work has gone on behind the scenes to ensure we hit the ground running on Friday, because getting as much information as we can during those initial sessions will be vital. "It's a fast street circuit with long flat-out sections and several high-speed corners, lined by barriers, meaning it'll be high risk and reward. "We're more motivated than ever and we expect to be in the hunt, so we are all looking forward to the debut Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia." Wolff also took a moment to pay tribute to Sir Frank Williams, who passed away on the weekend , commenting: "He will be in all our thoughts and we'll try our best to deliver a performance that's worthy of his racing spirit."
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