Wolff warns F1 rule changes won't break Mercedes dominance

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff says any attempts to break the Silver Arrows' long-standing dominance of Formula 1 by changing the sport's regulations will prove foolhardy, instead suggesting that leaving the rulebook unchanged is more likely to bring parity to F1.

Mercedes have secure title doubles in each of the last five years, and a sixth looks on the cards for 2019 as the team has won each of the first seven races of the season.

Six title doubles on the spin is unprecedented in F1 and comes despite two changes of regulations, in 2017 and this year, during their period of success.

Another major shake-up is planned for 2021, but Wolff says it may only serve to strengthen the hand of teams like Mercedes and Ferrari as they are able to cope with balancing current challenges and those to come.

He said: "The default reaction in the past when a team or the big three teams were running away with the championship is that we change the regulations, because you believe that by changing the regulations the others may catch up.

"I think it's exactly the opposite, which is counter intuitive, that eventually performance converges.

"We have seen that with the power unit regulations that have been stable for a while, and I think if we left the chassis regulations alone more teams would be closer together.

"But as in the past, teams lobby for change because they believe rolling the dice can be an advantage for them. But we look at the 2019 regulation and the 2018 regulations and none of that has happened.

"The teams that were in front, they increased the gaps they had, so we are back to square one. We are making that mistake over and over again."

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

When is the next F1 race? British Grand Prix schedule and details for 2026

• 3 hours ago

F1 Austrian Grand Prix 2026 results: Final classification after late penalties applied

• Yesterday 21:53

Ferrari 'dice roll' cost Lewis Hamilton at Austrian Grand Prix

• Yesterday 20:51

George Russell battled failure in Mercedes F1 car during Austrian GP victory

• Yesterday 19:53

F1 News Today: Mercedes in FIA breach at Austrian GP as Verstappen gives Russell the finger

• Yesterday 19:00

Max Verstappen plans two-month sabbatical after Austrian Grand Prix crash

• Yesterday 18:55