Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsMercedes

Wolff enjoyed F1 more as the underdog

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Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says life in F1 was "more enjoyable" as an underdog than as the dominant force.

Since the introduction of new power unit regulations at the start of 2014, Mercedes has been by far the strongest team, winning 24 of the 28 races since the start of last season, including 17 one-twos. However, in an interview with the official Formula One website, Wolff says there is less enjoyment being in such a position.

"It is clear that you have a more enjoyable - and nicer - life as the underdog," Wolff said. "But the situation that we have now is something that we in some ways expected. We’ve seen this with previous title-winning teams. Red Bull is a good example - or Ferrari in the early 2000’s - and it is something that you have to be aware of, as it is hard to ignore.

"As a team you need to take your brand and the way it is perceived seriously, but then the number-one objective is winning. And we can’t compromise on this target."

Wolff points to his first season at Mercedes - when Red Bull comfortably took its fourth championship double - as a year when he enjoyed F1 more.

"We were the underdogs when I started here in 2013. In that season we very much felt like the ones with some serious catching-up to do - and I also had that role at Williams back in 2012 and before. So I can definitely tell you it is the happier life. But would I trade that for success? Probably not."

Click here for a lighter look back at some scenes from the British Grand Prix

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.