If pre-season testing results are to be believed, then one could bet their house on Mercedes running away with another title. However, teams tend to hold back during pre-testing and could spring a surprise in the races and that’s what Ferrari would have intended to do. Another boost for the Scuderia team was the recent upgrades on their car which is all set to be unleashed in Austria.

That means Mercedes’ next title won’t come so easy and Toto Wolff agrees.

“Mercedes still has to bridge the gap with Ferrari”- Wolff

Mercedes Team Principal, Toto Wolff was in conversation with Motorsport-total. He said, “ The Ferrari engine was very strong last season and I think we haven’t seen the real power of Ferrari in the winter tests yet. Only in qualifying, we’ll see where everyone stands. But as always I’m always pessimistic before.”

Furthermore, he said, “ We still have to bridge the gap with Ferrari and make sure we have a reliable and strong engine again. Honda and Renault shouldn’t be ruled out either, because everything is on a fairly even level.”

It may seem odd that Wolff is so pessimistic about Mercedes’ chances. After all his team has had the best car on the grid for the past 6 years. Yes, they may have had some minor engine heating issues last season but that’s it. They still had the best car on the grid by a long shot. However, he knows that the other teams especially Ferrari have improved since last season (Racing Point was also pretty impressive in pre-season testing). He would also know that an out of contract Vettel may want to prove his doubters wrong. He also knows what an incredible talent Leclerc is. So there is enough reason for Mercedes to be wary.

Nevertheless, despite Toto Wolff seemingly undermining The Silver Arrows chances, they are still the front runners for another constructors’ championship. They are ‘THE’ team to beat. If Ferrari does manage to take the crown off Mercedes that’ll really be something. With the first race of 2020 only a month away we may soon find out.