Wolff bitter about defeat to Red Bull: "It's hard to swallow"

Toto Wolff saw Mercedes beaten by Red Bull Racing in qualifying ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix. The Austrian team boss is disappointed about the defeat, but at the same time, he is optimistic. Nothing is lost yet.

Wolff told the German Sky "It's hard to swallow, although we knew Red Bull would be strong." The top man goes on to say at Marca that it is difficult for Mercedes to deal with the hot temperatures. "The conditions are not in our favour. It's going to be a very tough, dog-eat-dog fight," Wolff said. 

Work to do for Mercedes

According to Wolff, the W12 loses time in the fast corners compared to Red Bull's 2021 car. Mercedes aren't quite satisfied on the engine front either. "It's not just one area where you fall behind," he said.

Mercedes struggled to get the tyres in the right 'sweat spot'. Despite this, the differences were minimal. "When you put the fastest laps and even the long runs side by side from both teams, it's all so close that any amount of fuel you bring can make a big change. We don't really know," said Wolff, who doesn't know whether they are ahead or behind Red Bull.