Realistic Expectations for Mercedes in 2016 Formula 1 Season

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: February 2, 2016

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It was soon after Lewis Hamilton's victory in the Belgian Grand Prix on August 23 last year when Mercedes' 2016 season began.

His sixth victory of 2015 at Spa-Francorchamps saw Hamilton extend his points lead over team-mate Nico Rosberg to 28 points and establish a 67-point advantage over third-placed Sebastian Vettel, instantly stifling the excitement surrounding the Ferrari driver's victory at the previous round in Hungary.

With just eight races remaining, the title was almost theirs, the fat lady was beginning to clear her throat and their work for the year was, to all intents and purposes, complete.



So a fortnight later, at the Italian Grand Prix, Mercedes spent all of their remaining engine-development tokens on a "tactical" upgrade, per the official Formula One website—introducing an initial incarnation of their 2016-specification power unit and a new Petronas fuel.

At Monza—F1's self-styled Temple of Speed, where engines are tested more rigorously than any other—here was an opportunity for Mercedes to identify and resolve any teething troubles with their new powertrain.

But none appeared.



"It looked quite frightening," wept Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, per ESPN F1's Laurence Edmondson, after Hamilton finished the first free-practice session—the very first on-track appearance for this engine—more than 1.5 seconds quicker than Vettel.

And then something strange happened.

Without a serious mechanical failure in the 11 grands prix until that point, Mercedes suffered two retirements in two races.



Rosberg's DNF at Monza was, admittedly, circumstantial after a leak in the cooling system, per the team's official Twitter account, forced him to revert to a much older engine, which finally burst into flames in the closing stages. But Hamilton's retirement in Singapore, where Vettel w...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Formula 1

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