Pre-season gave mixed messages about the order at the front but Ferrari is clearly going to start the year in the mix.
MERCEDES F1 2018 HOW TO
Having proved it has not forgotten how to build a title contender, the Italian team seemed quietly confident coming into the new campaign.
MERCEDES F1 2018 SERIES
Ferrariĭrivers: Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonenįastest lap in testing: 1:17.182 (fastest)įerrari used last year's overhaul of aerodynamic regulations to mount a serious championship challenge, only to see its season fall apart late on after a series of engine failures. With Pirelli introducing altered compounds for the 2018 and pre-season suggesting the W09 is little better on the softer tyres, Mercedes has a lot of work to do to ensure its latest car stays at the front end of the grid. The W08 car the team labelled "a diva" was tricky to understand and struggled to find the same performance gains on Pirelli's softer tyres as Ferrari and Red Bull did. Despite a strong second half of the season, Ferrari's implosion in the final rounds basically handed Mercedes the championship when the fight looked to be going to the wire. Hamilton is likely to secure a contract extension in the early part of the year and goes into the season as the odds-on favourite for a fifth world championship.īut 2017 proved Mercedes is not unbeatable. Spearheaded by Lewis Hamilton, who at times last year appeared to be operating at the peak of his talent, the German manufacturer will be a formidable opponent for anyone close enough to challenge. Mercedes' championship last season was perhaps the most impressive as it came despite a sweeping overhaul of Formula One's regulations, highlighting why this is one of the sport's all-time great dynasties. Pre-season gave little reason to expect otherwise and nor do the preceding four years of the V6 turbo era. The reigning world champions appear to be the team to beat again in 2018. Mercedesĭrivers: Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottasįastest lap in testing: 1:18.400 (seventh fastest) The second part of ESPN's team-by-team preview for the 2018 Formula One season looks at the top five from last year's championship standings, including the three teams most likely to fight for the title.
MERCEDES F1 2018 DRIVER
Looking back on it now though, he feels everything ultimately made him stronger as both a driver and a person, and sees the break between that year and the next as a hugely important phase in his career.You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserį1 2018 preview: Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull, Force India, Williams The setbacks took their toll on Bottas mentally, for he admitted after being told to move aside for team-mate Lewis Hamilton in Sochi he had thought about retiring from the sport altogether.
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Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team December 17, 2021
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? One last ride in Mercedes black and white. But plenty of podiums, so still good success in a way and as a team we secured the title in Brazil. “I think overall I was pretty quick but never nailed the whole race weekend and never had a win that year. There were many other unlucky events as well that year. Obviously I had some strong races and I remember very well in Baku I was leading with one lap to go and had a puncture on the main straight. “2018, being very honest, it was not my favourite car,” he said in a YouTube video on the Mercedes channel discussing his memories from each campaign. While he feels luck was not on his side, he admits he struggled to get to grips with his machinery that year too.
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That was not entirely his own fault, with punctures and team orders taking all-but-certain victories away from him in Azerbaijan and Russia respectively, but his performances often were not great either. Of the five seasons the Finn spent driving for Mercedes the second of them was perhaps his most difficult, being the only one in which he failed to win a race. Valtteri Bottas feels the struggles he endured in 2018 made him “a lot tougher” as both a driver and a person.