Mercedes have a real fight on their hands this season if they are to continue their dominance in the Constructors’ Championship as, at the time of writing, Red Bull lead the way in the standings, with the defending champions just behind.
The sport has been dominated by Mercedes since 2014. Last year they won their seventh straight title. No team in history have managed that feat before, not even Ferrari when they were at their best in the 90s and 00s.
The challenge from Red Bull has made this season even more fascinating. Both the Drivers’ Championship and Constructors’ Championship may go right down to the wire at the end of the year.
Although it is a slow start by their standards, Mercedes have still won three races. They were successful in the season opener in Bahrain. Further victories followed in Portugal and Spain.
Mercedes Expected to Bounce Back on Traditional Circuits
It is expected that Mercedes will perform much better on the traditional circuits after some disappointing performances on the street circuits. They did not fare well in Monaco or Baku. Red Bull came out on top in both of those races with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez respectively.
Lewis Hamilton had to settle for seventh place in Monaco’s street circuit, while in Baku, Valtteri Bottas was the best performing Mercedes driver in 11th spot crossing the finish line.
Their poor results have been put down to the design of the street circuits. They have tighter corners which means the cars are unable to reach top speed very often. On the conventional tracks, they should be exerting their advantage on their rivals with their cars.
Mercedes remains the odds-on favourites in the F1 betting for the Constructors’ Championship. They will be hoping to continue their excellent record in races such as the British Grand Prix, Hungarian Grand Prix and Belgian Grand Prix.
Red Bull have not won the Constructors’ Championship since 2013 when Sebastian Vettel helped them to success. They are 11/10 to end their eight-year wait for the title this season.
Hamilton Still Confident Of Title Glory
Hamilton is vying for his record-breaking eighth world title this year and, although he trails Verstappen by four points, there is plenty of time left in the season for the British driver to put himself in pole position in the standings.
The seven-time champion has said the recent results have not added extra pressure on him ahead of the upcoming races. Hamilton acknowledged the errors he made in Baku which cost him the victory in the Grand Prix and the chance to claim the top spot again in the title race.
The 36-year-old is still considered to be the man to beat. He is approaching a century of race victories in the sport now. That milestone should be reached fairly soon. He will be fully aware of the challenge from Verstappen this year but that competition could bring the best out of Hamilton.
It is unlikely that anybody will be writing the Mercedes team off just yet. If they get things right with their cars over the next few weeks, they could resume their position as the most dominant force in F1.
