1997 Formula 1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve has said that Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has 'lost his marbles' over the last couple of seasons, after seeing his team fall from grace.
Mercedes had won eight consecutive constructors' world championships between 2014-2021, before new regulations came in ahead of the 2022 season.
Since then, Red Bull have won 38 of the 44 F1 races, claiming back-to-back world championship doubles alongside star driver Max Verstappen.
In that time, Mercedes have won just once, when George Russell claimed victory at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix whilst seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton is without victory since 2021.
Toto Wolff's Mercedes team have not been able to provide Lewis Hamilton a car that's capable of winning regularly in the last two seasonsLewis Hamilton has struggled throughout 2023, whilst his rival Max Verstappen cruised to a third world championship titleGeorge Russell was the last Mercedes driver to win a Grand Prix, at the Brazilian GP in 2022
As Mercedes look ahead to 2024 where they will be hoping to bridge the gap to the dominant Red Bulls, Villeneuve has commented on the difficulties of going from being the best to struggling for victories.
“I think it was tough two years ago when they lost the championship,” he told Planet F1.
“Then he lost his marbles a little bit, the whole situation, because the team was not used to not winning.
“It was just cold water. Even a lot of the mechanics of the team, they were not used to it and not all of them could actually live with that.
“But he’s recovered really well. The team has been going in the right direction. Progress has been fair this year, although not as impressive as McLaren.
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