Mercedes: Rivals risk harming F1

Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff says his team's rivals risk damaging Formula 1 if they push ahead with the threat of an all-out engine war.

Amid mounting frustrations at Mercedes' reluctance to accept a relaxing of F1's engine freeze rules for next year, teams with rival engine suppliers are considering a bloc vote to lift development restrictions totally for 2016.

Wolff believes that such a move would be disastrous for F1, and shows that some teams were putting their own interests above those of the sport.

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"The rules can change with a simple majority but I don't think it's the way forward by trying to unsettle the system and saying that if you don't agree for 2015 then we are going to turn the whole thing upside down – engine war – no limitations anymore," explained Wolff. "You're looking at it being too narrow for your own team's performance and not considering what's going on around you and in Formula 1.

"I guess the FIA has a say in that and the F1 Commission is going to make the decisions, either by a unanimous decision next year or a majority decision for the year afterward. And we are going to be very vocal in describing and laying out our standpoint and then let's see what happens."

Wolff reiterated that Mercedes is against lifting the freeze because it fears that costs could escalate too much next year.

"We very much believe that we can't take any foolish decisions that would increase the costs for everybody," he said. "We need to keep that under control.

"We owe it to the teams that went out of business and we have to stay reasonable. We are going to resume the discussions when we get back to Europe."