Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has warned his team’s rivals that the days they don’t win are those they “should fear”.
Sunday was a rare off day for the Brackley-based squad as their 100% winning record in 2020 was ended by Max Verstappen claiming victory in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix.
Certainly, there is no suggestion that one result means Mercedes’ domination is over however, and the Austrian notes every defeat is just more motivation to improve.
“We have always said that the days where we lose are the days we gain the most and the days that our competition should fear,” Wolff told Sky Sports.
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“Today is a day that shows you have to be humble in the sport. People have said this Championship is done and Mercedes are going to win every race and here you go, we haven’t.
“That’s why all of us are going to dig deep and try to understand what the problem was and look at Barcelona to see if we have some solutions.”
At the heart of Mercedes’ problems at Silverstone was the tyres, as softer compounds combined with higher temperatures and pressures led to extreme blistering.
And with this weekend’s race in Spain set to feature similar conditions, albeit with the same C1, C2 & C3 rubber used as the first race in the UK, the German manufacturer knows it must find answers to what happened.
“I think we had indications in the past that our relative gap was not as large to our competitors when it was hot,” Wolff said. “It’s a little bit simplistic to just say it’s hotter.
“It comes down to the fact that we have a car with high downforce, and obviously when conditions change, parameters change, like temperatures going up, compounds getting softer, pressures going up, we have to acknowledge that the Red Bull is a pretty fast car, and that’s what we have seen today.
“We have these days in the past and came out stronger, and I’m really looking forward to Barcelona,” he added.
“We have a handful of days to assess, come up with solutions, test them on the Friday in Barcelona, and then hopefully have a better race on Sunday.
“These days where we lose are the days where we learn the most.”
