Toto Wolff joked that Mercedes can win the Azerbaijan GP if the four cars ahead crash at the first corner.
Toto Wolff joked that Mercedes can win the Azerbaijan GP if the four cars ahead crash at the first corner.
George Russell will start fifth and his teammate Lewis Hamilton seventh - separated by Pierre Gasly's AlphaTauri in sixth.
Wolff had expected Mercedes to be in their usual "best of the rest" position behind Ferrari and Red Bull, but the gap was greater than he anticipated.
"I think what was expected was to be the third fastest team," Wolff told . "Gasly had some great races and I think this was probably one of them."
"So it was as expected in terms of position, but the difference is big. It's a long lap and we're losing basically everywhere. I would like to not have to look at overlaps like that anymore in the future."
As for the race, Wolff believes that fifth and sixth places are probably a realistic goal for the Silver Arrows, unless there are unusual events up front.
"If you're extremely optimistic, you can say 'I hope all four of them crash at turn one, so we can win the race,'" joked Wolff. "But I think, on pure speed, it's realistic to come fifth and sixth."
With Azerbaijan having provided some surprises in the past, Wolff admits that strategy can play a role in the outcome.
"Strategy can play a big role. I think you can gain a lot of positions if you have the right strategy. We can take risks because it is a different situation when you are the hunter."