Wolff says ‘emotional’ Vasseur misunderstood Ferrari upgrade comments

Wolff moves to cool Ferrari cost-cap row

Toto Wolff has moved to clarify his remarks about Ferrari’s 2026 Formula 1 upgrade programme, insisting Fred Vasseur misunderstood the intent behind comments that triggered a sharp response during the British Grand Prix weekend.

Wolff said at the Red Bull Ring: “We’re a little bit surprised that Ferrari can throw these huge updates at the car in the way they do.” He added that, in his view, Ferrari should be close to running out of cost-cap room, because Mercedes did not have the same financial buffer to introduce parts at that rate.

Vasseur pushes back at Silverstone

Vasseur said he found the comments ironic coming from Toto Wolff and Mercedes. He argued that when Red Bull or Mercedes develop, they are treated as “genius”, but when Ferrari develops, the implication becomes that it is “cheating”.

He added: “We didn’t bring more parts than Red Bull or another [team]. I don’t know if it was a joke, but…” Vasseur then suggested that if Wolff believed Ferrari had overshot the cost cap, the implication was moving in the direction of accusing Ferrari of cheating.

Wolff insists it was an observation

After qualifying for the British Grand Prix, where Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli took pole ahead of Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, Wolff told Sky Sports that Vasseur had taken the comments in the wrong spirit.

“Fred is very emotional,” Wolff said. “If you would have read my comments, rather than just a headline, he would have seen that what I said was an observation and would be interesting to see how much updates one can pull out at the end of the season.”

Wolff added that the reaction reflected the emotion and passion surrounding team performance, saying he was “fine with that”. Asked directly whether Vasseur had taken the remarks out of context, Wolff replied: “I know it was misunderstood.”

The backdrop only sharpens the story. Mercedes and Ferrari remain the two dominant teams in this campaign, and the Silverstone qualifying result — covered in our report on Antonelli beating Leclerc to British GP pole — placed both teams at the centre of the competitive picture again.

Despite the tension, Vasseur indicated the relationship with Wolff would not be damaged, saying they would have time to speak during the break. The summer pause is set to begin in August after Silverstone, Spa and Budapest.