Mercedes plans on unveiling substantial updates to their W15 at this year’s American Grand Prix, seeking significant gains in performance. George Russell believes McLaren should remain dominant over Mercedes due to their missed wins throughout this season indicating their superior capabilities.
Russell’s Views on Mercedes’ Chances Against McLaren at COTA
Following their significant upturn before the summer hiatus, Mercedes enjoyed an upswing in performance that resulted in wins and podium finishes from Russell as well as Lewis Hamilton thanks to midseason updates; however recent events have exposed McLaren as clear frontrunners of competition.
With three victories in the last four events, McLaren is beginning to fully utilize the MCL38’s potential, widening their lead in the constructors’ standings. Russell points out that under Andrea Stella’s leadership, McLaren has not capitalized on their opportunities as much as they could have, despite their evident dominance.
Russell expressed, “McLaren currently stands as the most dominant team without a question. They have had the capability to win almost every recent race – their car performance certainly supports this.”
Russell stressed the significance of capitalizing on any mistakes from their competitors, underscoring how Mercedes can capitalize and possibly secure top positions or even victories should circumstances align in their favor. Though slightly behind schedule, Russell remains optimistic for competitive results in 2019.
McLaren could have achieved more wins but were prevented from doing so due to mistakes such as strategic and operational errors as well as driver difficulties. Moving from midfield contender to frontrunner can be daunting task; McLaren have demonstrated this on their journey but are well positioned this season with Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and the rest of their team playing an instrumental role. Nonetheless, success depends on them to secure both F1 Championships.