Wolff's hope for Abu Dhabi as Mercedes bid to fend off Ferrari

Mercedes vs Ferrari: Toto Wolff hopes for podium-finishing finale at Abu Dhabi GP in second-place fight After Mercedes' Brazil woes were followed up by misfortune and missed chances in Vegas, Toto Wolff is eyeing a podium return for Lewis Hamilton and George Russell in Abu Dhabi to fend off Ferrari in the standings; watch Sunday's Abu Dhabi GP live at 1pm on Sky Sports F1 Last Updated: 20/11/23 6:44pm Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Check out the funniest moments from the Las Vegas Grand Prix, including Shaquille O’Neal’s three words for Martin Brundle and Ted Kravitz dressed to impress in a tuxedo! Check out the funniest moments from the Las Vegas Grand Prix, including Shaquille O’Neal’s three words for Martin Brundle and Ted Kravitz dressed to impress in a tuxedo! Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is hopeful the team will have pace to return to the podium at this weekend's season-ending Abu Dhabi GP, as they aim to hold off Ferrari for second place in the Constructors' Championship. Mercedes' advantage over their Italian rivals has come down to just four points - the same as it was after 2023's season-opening race in Bahrain back in March - after a Las Vegas GP race day which did not go their way despite the W14 showing much-improved pace compared to the race before in Brazil.Lewis Hamilton, who finished seventh, twice lost ground in unfortunate collisions while George Russell saw fourth place turned into eighth by a five-second penalty for colliding with Max Verstappen. Ferrari finished second with Charles Leclerc and sixth with Carlos Sainz, meaning they outscored Mercedes by 16 points to bring themselves into striking distance in the standings for Sunday's Abu Dhabi finale."Sad to say yet another time that we had pace but just no result," Wolff told Sky Sports F1 about Mercedes' Las Vegas GP."George after the incident with Verstappen, where he got the penalty, that was pretty much game over. [The car had] pace for the front. Maybe not [to challenge] Max, but behind. It is what it is."On Abu Dhabi, Wolff added: "We have seen pace-ish today. I think we hopefully can recover and score solid podiums." Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player George Russell and Max Verstappen collide and debris goes everywhere, eventually leading to a safety car George Russell and Max Verstappen collide and debris goes everywhere, eventually leading to a safety car Two years on from the controversial conclusion to the 2021 drivers' title race in Abu Dhabi, when Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton started level on points, Wolff, in a thinly veiled swipe at former race director Michael Masi, added to the written media: "We are going there pretty much on equal points - with a proper race director, so that should be fine - and let's race."It's all down to the last weekend. They are very quick, they have done a good job. I think we could have been on par [in the Las Vegas race] but the result shows something different. So let's race."To be honest, it's good to have P2 as a positive to finish the season, but P2, P3 for me, that it doesn't make it better for me." Mercedes vs Ferrari in F1 2023 Mercedes Ferrari Points 392 388 Wins 0 1 Podiums 7 8 Poles 1 7 Two-car points finishes 14 13 Laps led 19 117 DNF/DNS/DSQ 5/0/1 4/2/1 What's the significance of second in F1? | Ferrari's Vasseur: 'Momentum is for us'With Red Bull totally dominant this season, Mercedes and Ferrari - the winners of 24 constructors' titles between them - have had to revise their pre-season targets downwards and each try and at least secure the next best position on offer, even if, as Wolff alludes, finishing second will ultimately not be cause for particular celebration.But in addition to sporting pride, there are useful prize money considerations too - the difference between second and third in the Constructors' Championship is thought to be in the region of $10m. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player The best of the action from an eventful Las Vegas Grand Prix The best of the action from an eventful Las Vegas Grand Prix Since overtaking fast-starting Aston Martin for second in the teams' standings at June's Spanish GP, Mercedes have seen their advantage over third place fluctuate amid the season's unpredictable race-to-race pecking order behind Red Bull.Ferrari had been a season-high 56 points behind Mercedes after July's Hungarian GP but have whittled that gap down to just four in the 10 races since.After a problematic start to the year, team boss Frederic Vasseur says the way the points gap has come down shows Ferrari are on a "good path". But he also made clear, that while Vegas went well for them, "Abu Dhabi will be another story"."Four points is nothing or a lot," added Vasseur."We were able to perform in Monza, in Singapore, in Austin, in Mexico