Mercedes boss Toto Wolff believes that his team are still firmly the underdogs this season despite leading both drivers’ and constructors’ championships at the summer break.
Mercedes made a strong start to the 2021 season with Lewis Hamilton winning three of the first four races.
But rivals Red Bull responded in dominant fashion, taking victory at the next five races while the German team floundered.
Before the British Grand Prix, Red Bull was leading both championships, but since Silverstone Mercedes have managed to regain top spot for the summer break.
Hamilton controversially won his home grand prix after colliding with Max Verstappen on the opening lap, forcing the Red Bull driver to retire.
Verstappen also had a torrid time in Budapest after Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas caused a melee at the first corner which the Dutchman became a victim of – but was able to recover back to ninth.
Currently, Hamilton leads Verstappen by eight points in the drivers’ standings while Mercedes are 12 points clear of Red Bull in the constructors’ table.
Wolff highlighted just how tough this season has been so far and how his team were able to turn around their mid-season slump.
“The last few months have been really intense,” said Wolff in a Mercedes YouTube video.
“We had a good period in early spring, we were able to compete strongly in Portimao and Barcelona, and then we had a few races that were really bad, starting with Monaco and then Baku.
“But since then, we have somehow found our grip, we have learned, we have discovered how our car performs on the new tyres, and I think we returned to a much better place in Silverstone and in Hungary.
“The season is very intense, but also [in] 2018 and particularly 2019, when we were fighting Ferrari, it was very difficult at times, we were really pushing the boundaries and that also means pushing each other almost to breaking point in order to win the championship.”
Hamilton is looking to win a record-breaking eighth world title this yearMercedes lead both championships as Formula 1 approaches the business end of the season, but Wolff still argues that Mercedes are the underdogs heading into the second half of the year.
“The hopes are one thing, the expectations are another thing, and the reality can be a different thing too,” he added.
“I think we are the hunter, we approach this with fun, there’s nothing to lose for us because we have a deficit towards our competitors.
“So we have just to win and continue the journey with great anticipation and joy every single race week, and try to do the best possible job and hopefully that’s enough to really compete for the championship until the very end of the season.”
Image credits: f1.com