Toto Wolff praises Lewis Hamilton, George Russell but says Mercedes must 'work out how to win' after French GP

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are both “outperforming” their cars this season, but the team needs to “work out how to win”. Mercedes recorded their best result of a challenging Formula One season at the French Grand Prix last weekend as Hamilton came in second and Russell third. Ad/> It was the first double podium of the season for Mercedes, who have otherwise struggled to match pace-setters Red Bill and Ferrari.

French Grand Prix'I'm enjoying my time more than ever’ — Hamilton hints at F1 stay beyond next season24/07/2022 AT 16:45 Reflecting on the latest result, Wolff said: “It’s encouraging we could score this result on Sunday but it’s still very difficult for us to pin down where [we would end up] if everyone finishes. “You know, we had the pace to go with [Sergio] Perez, but [Charles] Leclerc shunted out… and [Carlos] Sainz started from the back. “I think it’s simply we’re just lacking performance on the single lap and we’re lacking performance on the initial stages of the stint so there’s something to understand, and it’s not a silver bullet but it’s a few topics in performance.

Second and third is a good result but we need to work out how to win and there’s still a gap.” Exclusive: Horner hits out at floor changes for 2023 Leclerc heartbreak as Verstappen wins French GP Wolff was full of praise for his drivers, suggesting Hamilton and Russell are getting more than expected from the W13 car. “I think you are seeing a seven-time world champion [Hamilton] in a car that is not good enough for a World Championship at the moment. “He’s just pushing very hard and maximising what’s in the car and a faultless delivery.