Mercedes-Benz Worldwide

Menu
  • News
  • A-Class
  • B-Class
  • C-Class
  • E-Class
  • S-Class
  • G-Class
  • V-Class
  • X-Class
  • T-Class
  • CLA
  • CLE
  • CLS
  • CLK
  • GLA
  • GLB
  • GLC
  • GLE
  • GLS
  • SL
  • SLC
  • Citan
  • Sprinter
  • AMG GT
  • Maybach
  • EQ
  • Unimog
  • Trucks
  • F1
  • Concept Car

Mercedes F1 Clinging On To Lead

Mercedes-Benz | Mercedes-AMG 10/11/2021 No Comments
Mercedes-Benz | Mercedes-AMG
Click to rate this post
[Total: 1 Average: 5]

Five races remain in the 2021 Formula One season. As you might imagine, much of the focus is going on the clash between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. The former has cantered to the F1 Drivers’ Championship this last few years and was widely expected to do the same this year.
 

Verstappen had other ideas, however, and we are now being treated to a battle for the drivers’ F1 crown that looks too close to call, although Verstappen has the edge right now.
 
Yet while that pair have offered a – much-needed – bit of drama to draw in the casual motor racing fan, their enmity has perhaps taken some of the wider media’s glare away from the performance of Mercedes. If Hamilton has been dominant as a driver over the last half-decade, then Mercedes has been ever more so. 2021 was expected to be the manufacturer’s 8th successive Constructors’ Championship. If you bet on F1, you’ll know that the odds were remarkably short at the start of the season, but bookies aren’t so certain right now.
 
Mercedes F1 clinging on to lead
As it stands, Mercedes remains in the driving seat – holding a 23-point lead over Red Bull (460.5 vs. 437.5). But it is not as solid as it seems, and it is way down on last season when Mercedes finished 254 points ahead of its rivals. In all probability, Mercedes will cling on. Yet, you should not rule out Red Bull from claiming both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ titles.
 
Indeed, if you are to listen to some of the words coming from Mercedes’ bosses in recent weeks, you can tell there is a real sense of worry. The problem is that Mercedes has gone from being the most reliable constructor in F1 to (in relative terms) one of the least. The team has added more new power unit components – and the grid penalties that come with it – than any other in the sport.
 
The long and short of it is that Mercedes is gambling on adding power units to the car (there is a limit of three new units that can be added before grid penalties are imposed) to hopefully reap the dividends at the tail end of the season. But at the moment, it does not seem to be working.
 
Grid penalties hurt drivers’ chances
The man on the receiving end of those grid penalties has been Mercedes’ no.2, Valtteri Bottas. He had his sixth new engine (double what is permitted) installed at the US Grand Prix, meaning he received his third grid penalty. These penalties mean the driver starts from a lower position than what was reached in qualifying. At the US Grand Prix, for example, Bottas was moved down five positions. Earlier in the season, Hamilton received a 10-place grid penalty.
 
Mercedes is not accustomed to these types of setbacks. As we said, the team’s success was built on many pillars, but one of them was ultra-reliability. Bottas has taken more hits than Hamilton this season, but the former’s performances over the last four seasons (he finished second in four consecutive Drivers’ Championships) have been integral to Mercedes’ dominance as a constructor. While Bottas is doing okay (he’s 3rd), he will struggle to reach last season’s points tally, which was achieved across fewer races.
 
The point, as such, is that Mercedes is finally showing signs of weakness. In the past season, drivers could have an off day, or some unexpected event could scupper the team’s chances in an individual race. But those were outliers, and Mercedes would be back at the top by the next Grand Prix. That aura has gone. And it might stay gone, even if Mercedes clings on and wins a 9th successive Constructors’ Championship.

Share this ↓

Related posts :

  1. Mercedes is not ready to sign F1’s new ‘Concorde Agreement’
  2. The Red Mercedes-AMG GT R Launched To Congratulate Ferrari
  3. Mercedes-AMG Petronas Wins 7th World Championship Title
  4. Mercedes-AMG Insists On Not Withdrawing From Formula One But Will Reduce Costs
  5. 2022 Formula 1 Mercedes-AMG Official Medical And Safety Cars
  6. Mercedes-AMG Petronas Will Expand Its Technical Partnership With Williams Racing
  7. Mick Schumacher Inches Away From Becoming A Mercedes F1 Driver
  8. Mercedes-AMG And Aston Martin Will Share F1 Safety Car Duties
  9. Lewis Hamilton Became The First F1 Driver To Take 100 Pole Positions
  10. Lewis Hamilton Has A One-Year Extension From Mercedes-AMG Petronas
  11. Mercedes F1 Team Tested Positive For COVID-19
  12. Mercedes Formula One sent a statement of intent about its future
  13. Mercedes-Benz will close Formula One program after the 2020 season
  14. Mercedes-AMG Petronas Refused To Speak To Reporters
  15. Mercedes F1 W13 Fires Up Its Engine
  16. Romain Grosjean Will Drive A Mercedes W10 F1 Replace Lewis Hamilton
  17. Mercedes-AMG Stole An Epic 2021 DTM Title
  18. Lewis Hamilton Has Not Yet Renewed His Contract With Mercedes-AMG Petronas
  19. Lewis Hamilton Broke Michael Schumacher’s World Champion Record
  20. Mercedes Has Trouble Producing Formula 1 Engines
Prev Article
Next Article

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Google Translate

Recent Posts

  • 2026 Mercedes-Benz EQE 350 4MATIC SUV Review Test Drive
  • Mercedes-AMG S 63 Hammer Seem Flat & Uninteresting
  • Mercedes-AMG CLK Black Series VS Classic SL Life With My Classic
  • Mercedes E-Class Widebody Kit Feels Ready to Teach BMW’s M5 A Carbon Lesson Or Two
  • Mercedes-Benz GLC Recalls Over Insufficient C-Pillar Impact Protection
  • Mercedes-Benz G-Class Mansory’s Monopoly-Themed Is Actually Awesome
  • Mercedes-Benz 190 E Restomod Is Coming For Supercars At The Nurburgring
  • 2026 Mercedes-AMG E 53 Hybrid US Version Specs & Pictures
  • Mercedes-Benz GLC Electric Pre-Production Review
  • Mercedes-AMG C 63 You Actually Want Is A Massive Performance Bargain
  • Mercedes-Benz 190 E Restomod We’ve Been Waiting For Is Almost Here
  • Mercedes-Benz SL R107 Pogea Racing With AMG V8 Engine
  • Mercedes-AMG One Was Completely Destroyed In A Fire
  • 2026 Mercedes CLA Production Begins At Rastatt Plant
  • Mercedes-Benz Truck Drives In Reverse For Over 6 Hours & 77 Miles
  • 2026 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Arrives With Classic-Modern Styling
  • Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 Night Edition Full Build For NFL Professional Athlete
  • Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series At 7-Eleven
  • Mercedes-Benz S 600 V12-Powered Paid Half A Corolla
  • Mercedes G-Class Dashboard & Touchscreen Review

Categories

  • A-Class
  • AMG GT
  • B-Class
  • C-Class
  • Citan
  • CLA
  • CLE
  • CLK
  • CLS
  • Concept Car
  • E-Class
  • EQ
  • F1
  • G-Class
  • GLA
  • GLB
  • GLC
  • GLE
  • GLS
  • Maybach
  • News
  • S-Class
  • SL
  • SLC
  • Sprinter
  • T-Class
  • Trucks
  • Unimog
  • V-Class
  • X-Class

Mercedes-Benz Worldwide

Copyright © 2025 Mercedes-Benz Worldwide