Toto Wolff has challenged his Mercedes colleagues to "draw the right conclusions" in the hunt for more Formula 1 title glory. Not so long ago, the Silver Arrows were the sport's dominant force with eight constructors' championship successes in a row. But winning has been difficult in recent years with just a handful of race victories to show for the last three seasons. Mercedes have found it especially difficult to adapt to the current generation of F1 cars, which can be very temperamental if set-ups are not exactly at their optimum. It is an issue facing all their rivals too but Wolff's team has been the least consistent on that front.

And that is something the Austrian is determined to change in 2025. In a new era for the squad after Lewis Hamilton left for rivals Ferrari, Wolff wants to end the current regulations cycle on a high before turning full focus to their long-term future when new design rules come into force for 2026 and beyond. He said: "The trick is to be on the good side as often as possible. You start to correlate patterns - race tracks where your car is good, practice sessions where you pushed your car, tyre compounds with which the car harmonises better, track temperatures that are good for the car.

"I hope that we draw the right conclusions from this over the winter and adjust the development direction for the 2025 car. We won't be able to get rid of these fluctuations completely. We will also see them next year with all the teams.". Both Hamilton and George Russell won races last season - as did all four of the top F1 teams and every driver who raced for them, with the exception of Red Bull's Sergio Perez. The balance of power was ever-changing as the campaign went on and there is potential for more such volatility in 2025.

Wolff warned as much as he drilled home to Mercedes' rivals, including Hamilton's new team Ferrari, that more such "fluctuations" are going to happen as they balance pushing for title success in 2025 with preparing for the new ruleset and their long-term future from next year. The Austrian added: "All four teams that have won races [in 2024] have experienced these ups and downs. Nobody has designed a car that was consistently good across all race tracks and all weather conditions.

"McLaren had a great car for maximum downforce and hot weather. The Ferrari was also more on that side. Our car was fast when there were fast corners and the temperatures were cold. The Red Bull could sometimes do one thing and sometimes the other.". Catch all the action from Formula One on Sky Sports and get exclusive access to races, qualifying and much more for every Grand Prix. From Max Verstappen to Lewis Hamilton, you won't miss a lap on Sky Sports.