After a strong performance from Mercedes in Mexico, Christian Horner was quick to dismiss any developments made by the team during the season. According to the Briton, Hamilton’s finish came because of the Red Flag, which was brought out after Kevin Magnussen’s crash. He added Mercedes’ one-stop strategy would not have worked, and the Ferrari cars would have outperformed them if it weren’t for the Red Flag.
However, Toto Wolff quickly clarified, claiming the performances were not a stroke of good luck but the result of hard work. Wolff, in a talk with Autosport, explains how the Brackley-based team was able to achieve the result with the aid of their Brixworth-based High-Performance Powertrains site.
“HPP has done a fantastic job over the past few years – that was always our Achilles’ heel here that the turbo didn’t breathe good enough. That’s sorted and it’s a strong weekend. Our power unit was like all the others.”
After a front-row lockout in Qualifying, Ferrari had high hopes of a positive result in Mexico. While Charles Leclerc was able to clinch a podium finish despite the early collision with Sergio Perez, Carlos Sainz had to settle with a P4 finish. Meanwhile, Hamilton was incredibly happy with his team’s performance, which helped him ensure a strong outing in Mexico.
Lewis Hamilton happy to see Mercedes finally cracking the code
After a suboptimal outing on Friday, Hamilton had little hope of a decent race on Sunday. However, once he secured P2 in the race, the seven-time world champion was as surprised as anyone else. Having enjoyed great race pace, the Briton spoke to the media, where he admitted to being proud of his team and all the hard work they put in to maximize the potential of the W14 in each aspect of the race.
With the aim of a complete Mercedes resurgence, Hamilton is not unaware of the progress that Red Bull is making. He knows the Austrian outfit has made considerable leaps in the development progress and emphasized the need for Mercedes to be strategic in their approach.
With back-to-back second-place finishes in the main race, Hamilton feels ready to take on the Red Bull challenge in the upcoming season. He believes both teams will share great battles over the next season while vying for the constructor’s title.
