Toto Wolff says the pressure on Mercedes is growing as Red Bull emerges as a bigger threat this season.
Mercedes started the year in dominant fashion but Red Bull capitalised on Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg retiring in Spain to win for the first time since 2014. Daniel Ricciardo then took pole position in Monaco to end Mercedes dominance in qualifying and Wolff has called on his team to focus on finding more performance.
"I've said this many times before - but we have no breathing space in this Championship," Wolff said. "Maintaining any advantage is a constant battle - and the pressure is only getting bigger.
"This unpredictable season has been great for the sport and shows that Formula One is alive and well. But, for us as a team, there is clearly work to do. There remains room for improvement in our reliability - but the push for more performance has become increasingly important too."
Wolff says Mercedes needs to continue to improve if it wants to remain competitive for as long as possible, having won back-to-back championship doubles.
"We saw the 50th Formula One win for the Silver Arrows in Monte Carlo, which is a great achievement. But if we are to build the long-term success that puts Mercedes-Benz up there with the iconic names of this sport, we will need to push harder than ever."
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