Mercedes believes title battle wide open after Hamilton victory
Mercedes believes that the world championship battle has been blown open after Lewis Hamilton's victory in the Hungarian Grand Prix
Hamilton's dominance at the hot Hungaroring pointed to Mercedes having made a big breakthrough in its understanding of the tyres, which might have also been helped by the new Pirelli construction suiting its car better.
Although team principal Ross Brawn would not go as far as declaring that the outfit's tyre woes were now a thing of the past, he does think that the potential was there for it to pull off similar performances in the races to come.
When asked by AUTOSPORT about his feelings on the title fight with Hamilton 48 points behind Sebastian Vettel, Brawn said: "It is so fragile.
"I think it is still open and we certainly won't be giving up.
"This was a very good weekend for the team - from beginning to end.
"We had a very good programme on Friday. The balance wasn't great but we we did things on Friday and Saturday that helped.
"If we can replicate that there is no reason why we cannot win more races. If we don't replicate it then we won't.
"But we have to get both cars to the finish. We didn't do that here and you have to have both cars right up there."
Brawn also believes that the victory was vital for Hamilton's mindset and thinks there is no reason why repeat performances cannot now come.
"I hope it is another step," said Brawn. "It is an important step to get that race win, and there is absolutely no reason why more should not follow.
"Lewis showed faith in us at the end of last year, and people were speculating about whether it was a bad move or not.
"I hope we have now started to demonstrate that his faith was justified. It is very early days but it is encouraging."
Previous article
Former grand prix driver Tony Gaze dies aged 93
Next article
Lotus says Vettel ruined Grosjean's victory hopes in Hungary
Verstappen v Hamilton: Who was at fault?
Formula 1: Sprint Qualifying analysis
Hungarian Grand Prix Driver Ratings
This was race that showcased the best and worst of Formula 1, producing a first time winner and a memorable comeback to a podium finish. Avoiding trouble at the start and astute strategy calls were key to success, but where some drivers took full advantage, others made key errors that cost them dearly
The “heart-breaking” call that led to Ocon’s Hungarian GP triumph
Set to restart the red-flagged Hungarian Grand Prix in second, Esteban Ocon had some doubts when he peeled into the pits to swap his intermediate tyres for slicks. But this "heart-breaking" call was vindicated in spectacular fashion as the Alpine driver staved off race-long pressure from Sebastian Vettel for a memorable maiden Formula 1 victory
The F1 champion who became an Indy king in his second career
Emerson Fittipaldi’s decision to go racing with his brother led to him falling out of F1, but he bloomed again on the IndyCar scene. NIGEL ROEBUCK considers a career of two halves
Why Mercedes is pleased to be in the Hungary hunt at a 'Red Bull track'
Mercedes ended Friday practice at the Hungaroring with a clear gap to Red Bull thanks to Valtteri Bottas’s pace in topping FP2. But there are other reasons why the Black Arrows squad feels satisfied with its progress so far at a track many Formula 1 observers reckon favours Red Bull overall
How Red Bull endured its second car crash in two weeks
OPINION: Red Bull was justified to be upset that Lewis Hamilton survived his British GP clash with Max Verstappen and went on to win. But its attempts to lobby the FIA to reconsider the severity of Hamilton's in-race penalty were always likely to backfire, and have only succeeded in creating a PR disaster that will distract from its on-track efforts
The ‘screaming’ F1 engine future that may not be out of reach
OPINION: It wasn't just the Verstappen/Hamilton clash that had the Red Bull and Mercedes bosses at loggerheads at Silverstone, with the nature of Formula 1's 2025 engines also subject for disagreement. But hopes to have loud, emotive engines that are also environmentally friendly don't have to be opposed
The drivers that need to strike gold before F1's summer break
OPINION: Formula 1 is about to break up for summer 2021, with the title battles finely poised. But it’s not just the latest round of Max Verstappen vs Lewis Hamilton that will be worth watching this weekend in Hungary, as plenty of drivers are eying big results to change the stories of their seasons so far
How Lotus F1 uncovered, then squandered its last ‘unfair advantage’
Cast in the mould of its founder Colin Chapman, Lotus was powerful and daring but flawed – as it proved through further soaring peaks and painful troughs into the 1980s. DAMIEN SMITH examines a game-changing era
