Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team go into their home grand prix on the back of a frustrating triple-header, however with new upgrades for this weekend they will be looking to start hunting down Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen at the British Grand Prix.
Mercedes go into this weekend having been comfortably beaten by Red Bull at both rounds held at the Red Bull Ring, it leaves the team behind in the constructors and with work to be done.
Lewis Hamilton too has seen the gap between himself and championship leader Verstappen grow significantly, he will be hoping that the 140,000 British fans who will be in attendance on Sunday, will give him and the team the boost they need to start the comeback. Hamilton has always performed well at Silverstone, his home-race of course, this weekend will be even more special for the world champion though after having the newly named Hamilton straight named after the seven-time world champion.
Valtteri Bottas ended the triple-header as the faster of the two Mercedes at Spielberg, the Finnish driver who continues to be racing for his seat goes into this weekend full of confidence.
This weekend also see’s the first trial of the brand new weekend format, with qualifying on Friday evening and a sprint race on Saturday afternoon to determine the grid for Sunday’s race. Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff is really looking forward to all the challenges the team face this weekend with the new format, and hopes the sold out crowd will give the team a much needed boost.
“We head to Silverstone for a weekend with a full house of 140,000 passionate F1 fans and in the middle of a hard-fought championship. The circuit is just ten minutes from our home in Brackley and 45 minutes from Brixworth – and it will be a huge boost to be racing in front of so many enthusiastic supporters.
“The first weekend with the new sprint qualifying format brings a fresh challenge for all teams. With just a single one-hour practice session ahead of the Friday qualifying session, and the cars’ configuration fixed from the beginning of standard qualifying on Friday, whoever can get up to speed quickest will carry an advantage through the weekend. We will be adapting our approach and running plans to ensure we are best prepared for every aspect of the new challenge.
“This year we’ll be racing on the Hamilton Straight for the first time, which will be a special moment for Lewis and the whole team. I can’t think of another example of an active driver being honoured in this way by a circuit – it’s testament to what Lewis has achieved in this sport so far in his career. But I know come Saturday and Sunday, his only focus will be fighting for maximum points in this colossal championship fight.
“Valtteri enters this weekend full of confidence: he performed strongly in both races in Austria, with two podium finishes, and is eager to continue making up ground in the drivers’ championship table.
“Silverstone is an incredible track, fast and flowing, and one that we hope should suit our car better compared to Spielberg. We also have a few small updates on the car, and we look forward to seeing how they perform. We know we need to give Lewis and Valtteri the car to perform at Silverstone and everyone at Brackley and Brixworth is working flat out to deliver it.”