Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has cast doubt on Ferrari chairman John Elkann's recent declaration ruling out victories before 2022.

Elkann's brutal assessment came following the Italian team's difficult start to this season, as a loss of engine performance and underwhelming chassis has seen them drop back into the midfield battle.

But while it might be a realistic outlook that Ferrari will have to wait until the new regulations to consider challenging Mercedes again, Wolff doubts if it is the right message to send out.

“I saw those comments but it’s hard for me to judge,” he told Sky Sports. “Is it really possible to dismiss two seasons at once in order to prepare for 2022?

“We are only allowed to start developing the new car in January next year, which means that even if you write off this season, it will not give you any advantage.

“But I don’t think it’s my business to comment on the plans of Ferrari.”

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Also asked about Elkann's comments at Silverstone though, Haas boss Guenther Steiner believed it was an honest reflection of Ferrari's situation.

“I’m aware of the situation we are in and I see what they are doing and they are in, so I was not very surprised by the statement from Mr Elkann,” he said.

“For sure, it’s never nice to be told it will be difficult but again if you admit that it will be difficult you work hard to make it better going forward.

“But I wasn’t really surprised that he said that because for sure they did their analysis of the first three races and came to that conclusion and he just said it how it is.”

As part of Ferrari's effort to return to the front, a series of changes were made to the management structure at Maranello aimed solely at improving performance.

In addition, Mattia Binotto has confirmed he no longer holds the duel title of team principal and technical director.

"It took some time [to] organise ourselves, to make sure the technical department was reorganised," he said. "It's not something you do in one day.

"I am able, now that we've got people in the right role, having responsibilities and able to do the right job, to not do any more of the technical director job. There are other people doing it.

"They've got clear objectives. I think they are certainly as well enthusiastic and focusing on the objectives they need to achieve.

"On my side, there are a lot of things I need to do," he added. "Certainly keeping an eye and keeping them in the right position to deliver."