Mercedes boss Toto Wolff slammed those criticizing the 2026 Formula 1 regulations in the wake of the Miami Grand Prix last Sunday, which was won by his protégé, Kimi Antonelli.
Without taking anything away from Mercedes who have built the best car according to the new regulations, and Antonelli, who has driven brilliantly so far in 2026, it seems that Wolff, Antonelli, and George Russell are the only ones happy about the new regulations.
It must also be noted that most F1 team bosses are shamefully toeing the Liberty Media line, having clearly received the “Memo” from Stefano Domenicali.
But drivers, aside from Mercedes’, are not happy about the new rules and not even satisfied with the recent changes the FIA and Formula One Management introduced to make the racing less bad.
After his team won the fourth race in 2026 in a row, Wolff unleashed an attack on those criticizing the current ridiculous rules.
He said at the Miami Grand Prix weekend: “If there’s one single person that complains about the race today, I think they should hide, honestly.
“Now, obviously this track is a little bit easier; it’s not so energy-stuffed. There’s good games and there’s bad games, so I think that was great, great advertising for Formula 1.
“Whoever talks about changing engine regs in the short-term should question his way of assessing Formula 1 at that stage,” he added. “So spectacular race. Fight for the lead, fight in the midfield.
“It’s splendid. Can we tweak it and optimize it in the midterm? I think absolutely. We would never be against making the show even better. I’m thinking about SM modes [straight-line mode]. I think we need much more straight-line speed with the SM modes. We need to be courageous on doing that.
“In the midterm we are not opposed. Whether we could extract a bit more performance out of the ICE [Internal Combustion Engine]… Great. Give us enough lead time so we can actually do it,” he concluded.
We understand you want to win but…
Well, at least Wolff admitted Miami was a special case energy-wise, and at least he is open for change, but aside from that, he was simply spewing the same crap we have come to expect from Domenicali these days.
The racing in Miami was as ridiculous as ever, and the Sprint Race was proof, as it was so dull we were even hoping for yoyo racing—I can’t believe I just wrote that…
And while what Wolff said may pass with the “new F1 fans”, he has to respect the minds of the purists who have been watching the sport for years and have kept the faith in F1 despite its sad decline we have come to witness in years, well, ever since Liberty Media bought it and Domenicali became a sellout.
Mercedes have been out of contention ever since the ground effect era began in 2022 with the pogo sticks they built and Red Bull Racing emerging as the dominant force with Max Verstappen. And when those were dethroned, it was McLaren who took over, Mercedes’ customer team… Embarrassing…
That must have hurt, so much so that the pressure the Mercedes-Benz board was reportedly putting on Wolff to get his act together was unbearable.
That meant the anything less than a Championship in 2026 was not acceptable and as such, Wolff may be given a pass for being desperate to win in 2026.
And with the flying start Mercedes has had, you can’t blame Toto for not wanting anything to change but when it comes to talking up the show, he should at least respect our intelligence. Otherwise just stay silent.
In the end, Mercedes would end up winning in what could become the worst era of Formula 1. (Wolff Quotes by Agnes Carlier)