Brown points out rivals' weakness: 'Could happen at Mercedes and Red Bull'
F1 News
McLaren CEO Zak Brown sees an exciting battle happening in the upcoming season. After his team won the constructors' title the previous season, the American sees Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes as the frontrunners together with his squad. Brown also shared his special verdict on Lewis Hamilton, and the two rookies who will be racing towards the front, Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Liam Lawson.
Brown sees Hamilton as a 'contender'
Lewis Hamilton is set to begin his first season with Ferrari, after spending more than a decade with Mercedes. Zak Brown would not rule out the Briton fighting for a title this upcoming season. "Yeah, I'm definitely anticipating Lewis being a championship contender. I think we and Ferrari ended last year with nothing between us. I think that'll continue," he began to GPblog among others in London.
The McLaren CEO sees a tough battle happening towards the front of the pack. "Mercedes were very close. They still won four or five races, so I put them in there. And, of course, Red Bull. Super strong first half of the year. A little bit less strong in the middle of the year, and then ended very strong. So, I don't think there's going to be anything between those four teams."
Different challenge for Red Bull and Mercedes
At two of the predicted frontrunner teams, there will be two drivers who will begin their first full-time F1 season: Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Liam Lawson. The latter at least previously completed some races. While Brown also sees their talents, also believes that at some weekends, their teams will miss out because of them settling into their new roles.
"Obviously, Kimi and Liam being rookies. Liam being, let's call it inexperienced as opposed to a rookie. I think that, from a constructors' point of view, will probably present a bit more of a challenge over 24 races. Because they'll inevitably have some rookie weekends, if you like. But I think they're both extremely quick drivers. And I anticipate both of them winning races," he concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Nicole Mulder
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