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• Wolff: Mercedes missing Lauda's influence in ongoing struggles

  Mercedes are missing the influence of Niki Lauda amid their ongoing struggles, team principal Toto Wolff said.

  Three-time champion Lauda held a non-executive chairman role with Mercedes until his death in 2019 and played an integral role during the team's dominant years in Formula One.

  That spell at the top now seems a million miles away, having conceded the Constructors' Championship to Red Bull last season when they won just a single race.

  Mercedes' struggles look set to continue in 2023 after failing to get on the podium in either of the first two races of the season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, where Red Bull dominated.

  While the team are in need of development upgrades to close the gap on their rivals, Wolff outlined why the absence of Lauda is also a hindrance.

  "Niki's missed all those years because Niki always simplified things to really what mattered," he said.

  "I'm having to think what would he have said, and how would he have positioned [things], and the two of us worked well together in that sense that sometimes oversimplification can lead you straight to the results.

  "But there are lots of nuances. This is a technical sport, so maybe my role was to translate it in a way that we actually were able to execute it in the car design.

  "But this is very simple: the stopwatch never lies, and we see on the data where we are missing and that needs to be corrected."

• Horner rules out Red Bull move for Hamilton amid Mercedes woes

  Christian Horner has ruled out Red Bull making a move to snatch Lewis Hamilton from rivals Mercedes at the end of the season.

  The seven-time Formula One champion looks set to endure another difficult season with Mercedes, having failed to win a race in 2022 – the first year in his career without a victory.

  Mercedes' struggles have reignited the debate around Hamilton's future, with the British driver's deal due to expire at the end of the season, and team principal Toto Wolff accepted there can be no complaints in the years to come if Hamilton moves elsewhere.

  However, Red Bull would not make a move if Hamilton was to become available, with Horner adamant Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez will remain put for next season.

  "What Lewis has achieved in F1 is second to none, but we're very happy with the drivers that we have," he told Sky News.

  "They're committed as a pair not only this season but the next season as well. So, I can't see where we would be able to accommodate Lewis."

  While Mercedes have struggled so far this season, failing to secure a podium in either of the opening two races, Horner expects the team to improve over the course of the year.

  "I'm sure they're going to sort their issues out – we're certainly not writing him off yet," he added.

  "We're hearing about big Mercedes upgrades. I'm sure Ferrari aren't happy with their current position as well. So, we're fully expecting things to converge quickly."

  Hamilton has spent the past decade with Mercedes and has won six of his seven world titles with the team, the other coming in 2008 during a five-year stint with McLaren.

• Fraser McConnell caps off NitroRX season with podium finish as Dreyer & Reinbold claims team title

   Jamaica’s lone rally cross driver Fraser McConnell capped off a fine 2022/23 Nitro Rally Cross season by finishing second in the season finale Group E Round 10 event at Glen Helen Raceway in California last weekend.  McConnell demonstrated his tactical prowess during the damp six-lap final, only to be edged out by Dreyer&Reinbold Swedish teammate Robin Larsson, who took the final event in a time of 4:58:964.

  Norway’s Andreas Bakkerud made it a clean sweep for team DRR after finishing third.

  For his efforts, McConnell ended the overall championship third in Nitro RX 2022/23 and his contribution also allowed for team DRR to secure the team title which was pleasing for the Jamaican.  “It has been a really great season in Nitro with me having a lot on the table and racing alongside people like Travis Pastrana, who is my childhood hero,” McConnell said.

  “To be able to get third in the Championship with such a stacked field, was a big accomplishment for myself and Jamaica.”

  McConnell entered the final day as one of the top five racers who were close in the championship standings. With Larsson eventually sewing up the championship, it was down to McConnell and Pastrana to see who would finish second and third, with the American just edging out the Jamaican in the last race of the season.

   Following another successful season made possible by the support of sponsors Tru Shake, Just Bet, Proven Wealth, Jamaica Tourist Board and Rainforest Seafood, McConnell is already looking ahead to next season with his team in talks with the Nitro RX organizers to kick off the new season in June of this year.

   “I am very happy with where I am at in my career and this past season really developed me as a driver. This shows that I can compete and beat the best in the world,” added McConnell.

   After a break back home, McConnell will next turn his attention to the X44 Vida Carbon Racing, the Extreme E Team founded by Seven-Time Formula 1 Champion Sir Lewis Hamilton.

   McConnell will join season-two winner and World Champion Cristina Gutiérrez as his race partner.