'We expect a crash to cost £300,000 in general'

The drivers of the top teams generally crash less often than the cars in midfield. On the one hand this is due to the level of drivers the top teams can hire, but on the other hand it is simply because there are fewer cars at the forefront of Formula 1.

The Mercedes team doesn't experience many crashes at all. The last time both cars ended up in the barrier was during the German Grand Prix 2019. Lewis Hamilton even managed to park his car almost twice in the gravel pit, but miraculously managed to finish the race. That could not be said of Valtteri Bottas, who made an identical mistake, but was just a little less lucky.

Considerable cost after crash

It's also a good thing for Mercedes that they don't have to deal with many crashes. During a Q&A on the team's Instagram channel, it was made clear how much a crash will cost: "This of course varies from case to case, but we generally expect each crash to cost us around £300,000".

With such costs, it is therefore important that Formula 1 drivers are well prepared for each race, especially when there is no less than seven months between two Grands Prix - as will be the case with the Austrian Grand Prix on 5 July. That's why Hamilton took a seat in an F1 car at Silverstone last week and Bottas says he's fitter than ever.