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Wolff expecting Mercedes to be 'on good form' at Silverstone

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff isn't expecting the Silver Arrows squad to suffer at Silverstone from the cooling issues that undermined the team's performance last time out in Austria.

The German manufacturer endured its first defeat of the season in the ninth round of the F1 world championship, beaten by Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc but overcome first and foremost by cooling issues impacting the engine of its W10.

The problems forced both Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton to make extensive use of a 'lift and coast' strategy to keep their car's temperatures in check.

Wolff: Hamilton off-track freedom key to on-track performance

But Wolff is expecting this weekend's British Grand Prix to take place in a very different environment.

"Austria exposed the biggest vulnerability of our car and it meant we couldn't challenge for the win at any point of the weekend," Wolff said in the team's Silverstone preview.

"We've been working on our cooling for a while, but the combination of high temperatures and altitude in Spielberg ultimately meant that we had to do too much temperature management to be competitive.

"We will continue to work on this to have a better fighting chance at future races in the heat.

"Fortunately, the English summer is known for more moderate temperatures, so cooling should not be a major issue for us in Silverstone - although we've learned in the past that the weather at the British GP can be highly changeable."

©Mercedes

Despite Wolff's confidence that Mercedes will avoid a repeat of its Spielberg woes, the Austrian isn't in the bit complacent.

"We've had some of our best performances this year on tracks with a wide range of corner speeds, so on paper we should be in relatively good form.

"But we've also had a number of reliability issues that could have easily robbed us of a considerable amount of points, so we know that we need to stay vigilant and perform to the best of our abilities if we want to be in the fight this weekend."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.