According to Wolff, nothing is true of the persistent rumours

There are rumours that Chief Technical Officer at the Mercedes F1 Team, James Allison will rejoin the team full-time because of the disappointing performance. However, according to team boss Toto Wolff, none of this is true.

Mercedes' team has not started the 2023 season too well. Performance has been disappointing and the Brackley-based F1 team has also been unable to compete for wins so far. Drivers are also not yet happy with how the W14 car behaves: too little top speed, an unstable rear end and little grip. And on top of that, the car still suffers a lot from so-called porpoising. So, in short, something needs to be done at the Mercedes F1 team.

Allison never left

So rumours abound that James Allison is fully back at the Brackley factory. The former Ferrari and Lotus technical director joined Mercedes in 2017. After four years, Allison stepped back on a day-to-day basis and became more part-time as head of technical services at the team. Since then, the Brit has also been involved in other projects such as INEOS' involvement in the America's Cup sailing competition. "But you need to find the right people for the right roles. He (Allison) is involved in the long-term strategy of the team. But he is doing more activities like America's Cup," Toto Wolff told Autosport.com.

Earlier, a Mercedes spokesman also told GPBlog that James Allison is continuously involved in leading the technical team and was therefore involved in the debrief after the race in Australia. "He is also attented races from time to time and will continue to do so." So there was no question of a return at all.