Toto Wolff celebrates F1’s move away from “messy” ground-effect cars after Mercedes front-row lockout

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has admitted his relief after a strong Saturday from his drivers as he celebrated the end of the ground effect era. This comes after a commanding pole position from George Russell for the Australian Grand Prix.

Following a dominant Saturday session in Melbourne where Russell placed his Mercedes at the front of the grid ahead of team-mate Kimi Antonelli, Wolff spoke openly to Sky Sports F1 about the team’s strong start to the weekend and the intense behind-the-scenes effort required to get both cars out on track today.

Reflecting on the new regulations and the departure from the challenging ground effect aerodynamics, Wolff did not hide his satisfaction. “I’m so happy that those messy ground effect cars are gone and finally we do what we are best at,” Wolff admitted.

Despite the inherent loss of downforce under the new 2026 ruleset, Russell appeared remarkably comfortable, threading his car precisely between the white lines of the Albert Park circuit. Wolff credited this to both the machinery and the British driver’s maturing talent.

“George, as a person, has made another step in seniority and confidence in driving the car. And I think it’s just how he likes it,” Wolff explained. “I mean those cars have lost downforce but when you look at the aerodynamic and mechanical side the car looks like it’s on rails, at least today.

“And when the driver has confidence in the car, then this is what you can do and it’s just driver-car combination and power unit. Today, everything works together to put it on pole.”

While the pace of the W17 caught the attention of the paddock, the Austrian was quick to dismiss any suggestions of deliberate sandbagging during testing and practice.

“You can’t really sandbag, or at least we don’t, we can’t do that because you never know where the car is,” he added. “So we’re surprised by the gap, but I’m taking it.”

The qualifying result was nearly derailed earlier in the day following a big crash by Mercedes youngster Antonelli, who is now entering his second season in the championship. The Italian’s incident forced the Brackley squad into a pressured but impressive rebuild.

“That car looked like a Lego Formula 1 car that was thrown on the floor like literally two hours before, and I said to them that five minutes before the start of the session we wouldn’t make it,” Wolff revealed, praising his mechanics. A red flag caused by Max Verstappen ultimately bought the garage the extra time they needed.

“It’s a miracle that not only the car was put together but also that lap that he did. I mean there was no setup on the car, we were never able to really measure it.”

Despite Antonelli’s blinding raw pace, Wolff moved to manage expectations regarding an inter-team championship battle this season.

“I think in pure speed terms, he’s absolutely there,” Wolff said of the Italian. “He’s in his second year of Formula 1, George is nine or ten. All around you need experience so, I think it would be early days for Kimi to compare himself to George.”

With a front-row start secured, Mercedes now looks to convert its Saturday dominance into its first win at the season-opening grand prix.

Photos from Australian GP – Saturday

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