Formula 1 giants Mercedes have staggered off the start line thus far in 2022, but team principal Toto Wolff is eager to savour the positives.
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have mustered just one podium finish apiece across the first three races, finishing a respective fourth and third in Sunday's Australian Grand Prix. They remain slightly ahead of Red Bull in the constructors' standings, however, and are second only to Ferrari, leading the team's boss to focus on what's working well.
"We are leaving Melbourne in a better state than when we arrived – more lessons learned, more data to analyse and more points on the board," Wolff the official Formula 1 website . "Clearly, we haven’t got the pace yet to challenge Ferrari and Red Bull but we know where we need to seek performance.
"Seeing Lewis and George perform at an exceptionally high level with a tool that is clearly not on the pace of the leaders is another example of the spirit of this team. We are optimistic yet realistic on the timeline for improvement and the advantage our competitors have, but P3 and P4 helps us leave Australia with a good feeling."
Mercedes' struggles in pre-season always seemed too substantial to expect a solution at this early stage of the campaign. Their W13 car appeared to experience particular problems with porpoising, an issue that's reared its head again since ground effect re-emerged under this season's restructured designs.
The Silver Arrows have until April 24 to attempt rectifying those issues ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola. Wolff added the mindset and strength of his team has left him "very optimistic for the future," suggesting Hamilton may have also podiumed in Melbourne had he not pitted shortly before the safety car on Lap 23.
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Runaway leader Charles Leclerc underlined his dominant position by beating runner-up Sergio Perez by 20 seconds in Melbourne. Red Bull poster boy Max Verstappen failed to finish for the second time this season, however, which has helped Leclerc build a 34-point lead over his nearest standings rival, Russell.
Hamilton won the inaugural edition of the Emilia Romagna in 2020 before Verstappen finished first in 2021. Leclerc will be hoping to make it a third different victor in as many editions later this month, having also claimed the fastest-lap bonus point in all three races so far this season.
Significant changes to the W13 are expected as Mercedes look to close the gap at the top, with the team yet to produce a finish higher than third thus far. Red Bull's own issues have inadvertently aided title favourites Ferrari, who are at risk of running away with things unless their lead can be cut down in the coming weeks.
