Toto Wolff has said Mercedes has not made the most of its overall potential in recent races, with reliability issues having caused the team to drop points.<\/p>\n
Both Kimi Antonelli and George Russell have suffered power unit-related retirements this season, while late damage to Antonelli at Silverstone cost him a chance of victory in the British Grand Prix.<\/p>\n
Toto Wolff: Mercedes has \u2018left too much on the table recently\u2019<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> to your favourites list for news you can trust.<\/p>\n Russell took a podium finish last time out at Silverstone, but a slow start from pole for Antonelli saw both Ferraris leapfrog him on track.<\/p>\n However, despite a slow puncture being rectified at Russell\u2019s stop, damage on the front-left of Antonelli\u2019s car saw him forced to pit a second time and, with a five-second time penalty at the Safety Car finish, he dropped out of the points entirely.<\/p>\n Both Mercedes drivers are first and second in the Drivers\u2019 standings, with a healthy lead in the Constructors\u2019 table, but team principal and CEO Wolff is not wanting to let up \u2013 with the gap to third-placed Lewis Hamilton at 32 points ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n With that, comes the need to \u201cexecute cleanly\u201d before the summer break.<\/p>\n \u201cThe last few races have underlined both where our strengths are and where we need to improve,\u201d Wolff said ahead of the weekend at Spa-Francorchamps.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a car capable of fighting at the front and scoring heavily, but we have not converted that potential into the best possible results.<\/p>\n \u201cReliability issues have cost us points, and in a championship this competitive, that is something we cannot afford. There is no value in having the pace if we don\u2019t bring home the result.<\/p>\n \u201cSpa is one of the great challenges on the calendar. Like Silverstone, energy management will play an important role, but the characteristics of the circuit create different demands.<\/p>\n F1 2026: The season\u2019s winners and losers<\/p>\n The results of the F1 2026 championship <\/a><\/p>\n The F1 2026 Drivers\u2019 and Constructors\u2019 Championship standings<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt usually produces exciting racing and genuine overtaking opportunities, while qualifying remains a significant test.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the final double-header before the summer shutdown and we want to head into the break on a stronger note. Our aim is to execute cleanly, deliver the reliability we need, and convert the performance of the car into the points it is capable of scoring.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have left too much on the table recently. We need to make sure that doesn\u2019t happen again starting this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n