Ever since the ground-effect regulations came into effect in 2022, it has been the same story of despair for Mercedes. Flawed car concept, firefighting efforts to fix its issues, a glimmer of hope followed by a rude reality check, and then repeat! Not once have the Brackley-based outfit looked in good shape to fight for the world championship in the past three seasons.
However, George Russell feels this could change in 2025, which is the last year of the current regulations. Despite Mercedes never having given him a car that was competitive enough to fight at the front consistently, the #63 driver is singing positive tunes about their prospects this season.
When Sky Sports F1 presenter Craig Slater asked him whether he feels he has reached the level of being a solid title contender after three years with Mercedes, Russell asserted, “Yeah absolutely. I feel ready”.
Having joined the Silver Arrows in 2022, the Briton has never seen the team at its dominant best, which was the case for eight seasons before he came on board. Talk about bad timing! Nevertheless, Russell is not losing hope that Mercedes can figure out its way to the top and spring a surprise in 2025. What makes him so confident?
“I feel that these years [of struggle] sort of have been trial and error. But every time we have had a chance to win, we’ve won. And that’s what gives me the optimism that if we do have the [right] car, we can achieve it,” the 26-year-old added.
Russell isn’t wrong in his assessment that Mercedes have won convincingly whenever they have got a good enough car at certain tracks in the past three years. In 2024 particularly, the races in Silverstone and Spa saw the flawless best of the Brackley-based outfit with both of its drivers in contention for poles and wins, eventually securing both victories.
Could this year be Mercedes’ year? pic.twitter.com/PSVwaVpmmO
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) February 6, 2025
Russell would hope that is the case consistently at every race weekend in 2025. “We are working as hard as we can to, for it to be this year”, he added. Still, he would understand if the team decides to focus on the long-term gain rather than put all their bets on this season only.
Mercedes have to make the tough choice
With the 2026 engine and aero regulations marking a massive shift in the sport, all teams are going to trade off some performance this year to try and secure a competitive edge for the new era of regulations.
Mercedes, particularly, would be wary of the risks and rewards at this crucial juncture, considering how they dropped the ball during the 2022 regulation change. They also have a slight advantage in this reset of the pecking order, as this time around, even the engine formula is seeing a revamp.
The last time that happened was the start of the turbo-hybrid era in 2014, which saw Mercedes produce an uber-dominant power unit, almost a second faster than the rest of the field. The German team would ideally want to focus on making a similar comeback in 2026, besides also figuring out the new aero concept rather than fussing about the ground-effect one.
As things stand, Mercedes are not in the best shape to be a championship contender in 2025. While Russell would want his optimistic prediction to come true — which would be amazing to witness — he knows the ground reality. So, the Briton’s focus would also be on making the best of the car this year while aiming for that maiden world title in 2026.
