Mercedes long-lasting title reign closing its end thanks to Red Bull

Red Bull have got the better of every team this season and thanks to the fine driving from Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, have a chance to end Mercedes’ run of consecutive Constructors’ Championship titles. The German team have been on top for the last eight years, but Christian Horner’s team have been unbeatable this year and could claim the title this weekend in Austin, adding to Verstappen’s World Championship title, which he won in Japan.

As everyone knows, Sir Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have had great success in the sport and with eight World Championship titles between them, team titles were soon to come following a team-up.

In all three seasons as teammates, the duo only missed out on one pole position per year and from the combined 56 poles, Hamilton and Rosberg were able to finish atop the podium 51 times, whilst also combining for 2,169 points throughout the three years.

Despite winning in 2016, the German knew it was his time to end his F1 career and retired after his winning season, but this only propelled Mercedes to the top of the sport and created the foundations of success which were seen in seasons after.

After three strong years and nine podiums at Williams, Toto Wolff turned to Valtteri Bottas in order to fill the boots of Rosberg. Although the Finn was never able to win a Driver’s Championship for the German team, he was a key factor in helping Mercedes and Hamilton win continuous joint titles for four years straight.

The team’s highest points finish with Bottas was in 2019 as they ended with 739 points. However, the most interesting stat to look at was the fact they won 15 races but only claimed 10 pole positions as Ferrari found success through Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel, claiming nine poles of their own.

Last year saw a non-Mercedes driver win the Driver’s Championship for the first time since Vettel in 2013, as Verstappen claimed victory in the final race of the season, drawing an obscene amount of controversy due to the FIA’s decision-making. However, this wasn’t enough to stop the team from extending their consecutive Constructor’s Championship title wins to eight years.

Verstappen and Red Bull have been on a different level this year compared to the rest and it’s not hard to understand why Mercedes’ long-running reign on top could see its end. In order to claim the top spot, Red Bull need to outscore their rivals, Ferrari, by 18 points and then we will finally see an end to Mercedes Championship winning years.