Wolff says Mercedes upgrades fell short as team seals ninth constructors' title

Toto Wolff said recent upgrades to Mercedes' Formula 1 car had failed to produce the expected effect, even as the team secured its ninth constructors' championship at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. According to BBC Sport's post-race report, the Mercedes team principal acknowledged that rivals had closed the gap after his team's strong first half of the season.

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George Russell finished fourth and Kimi Antonelli fifth in Brazil, results sufficient to give Mercedes its first constructors' title since 2021. The team championship followed Antonelli's drivers' crown, which he had secured a week earlier in Mexico. But neither Mercedes driver converted a promising position at Interlagos into victory, with Lando Norris winning for McLaren in changing weather conditions.

Antonelli took the lead from pole-sitter Norris at the start and built an eight-second advantage over the opening 13 laps. Norris then reduced the gap as the circuit dried, before switching to slick tyres one lap earlier than the Mercedes driver. Antonelli subsequently spun at Turn One, surrendering the lead. He said afterwards that he still needed to examine why the rear of his car had broken away so suddenly.

Russell's challenge had already suffered a setback. Having started seventh and advanced to third, close behind Norris, he spun while leaving the pits. A deficit of 1.2 seconds to the McLaren became 20 seconds, ending his opportunity to fight for the win. Despite those errors, Mercedes collected the results required to complete its championship double.

Wolff said the balance of competition had changed during the season. He pointed to Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull alongside Mercedes as teams capable of winning races, and said recent development work had not yielded the anticipated improvement. His assessment was that next year's championship would be difficult, rather than the beginning of another sustained period of Mercedes dominance.

Reflecting on the years since Mercedes' previous constructors' success, Wolff credited the staff's resilience through repeated difficulties understanding the car. Antonelli also praised the team's work after the race, putting his disappointment over the spin aside to recognise the championship achievement. Mercedes left Brazil with both titles secured, but with its drivers and team principal still identifying problems to investigate.