Are Mercedes on the road to recovery? 'We want to reinvent ourselves'

Mercedes dominated Formula 1 from 2014 to 2020, winning both the Drivers' and Constructors' titles in those years. In 2021, they won their last Constructors' but Lewis Hamilton lost out to Max Verstappen for the Drivers' championship. Since then, Verstappen and Red Bull Racing have been dominant. Now, with a season that looks set to potentially end that domination, Mercedes must recover to be within contention of the championship.

The Formula 1 season is underway, with one-third of races complete. Although Red Bull remain at the top, other teams are closing in, with Ferrari being just 24 points behind in the Constructors. Mercedes are currently fourth, behind customer team McLaren. In recent years, Mercedes have repeatedly battled with Ferrari for second place. In 2022, it was Ferrari who won, but in 2023 the roles reversed when the Silver Arrows secured the spot by just three points. This season though it seems Mercedes is just fighting to make it into the top three altogether.

Why have Mercedes lost their dominance?

After the 2022 changes, it seemed Mercedes could not get to grips with their car, whereas Red Bull flourished. Both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have been critical of the car's performance, with complaints around bouncing, grip and pace in the past. With the issues they have faced, the team has struggled to perform consistently. Hamilton, a seven time world champion, has failed to win a race since 2021, and his teammate Russell has not won since his maiden F1 win in 2022. It seems the team made some wrong decisions when designing their car, and so they must work their way back to the top through rectifying them.

Is Mercedes' luck about to change?

So far in 2024, Mercedes have not featured on the podium. Although their drivers have scored points, neither sit in the top five. Russell sits at seventh, with Hamilton 12 points behind in eighth in the Drivers' standings. Nevertheless, things could be about to change. On Saturday's qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix, Russell set the same lap time as Verstappen, and took pole position for Sunday's race after achieving the time first. The team has begun to introduce upgrades to their car which they hope will put them back on top.

In the press conference after Saturday's qualifying, Russell remained optimistic: "I think every lap we've done this weekend, the car's been feeling good. We've always been at the upper end of the timesheets. We were talking yesterday, why do we think we were so competitive on FP1, FP2, and obviously on FP3, really fast as well. We need to see in the next races if that continues. Obviously last week in Monaco, we were a tenth from the front row here on pole, and this is the first two races we've had with the upgrades. Time would tell. We'd only get carried away with ourselves. But it's looking good so far."

'We've embarked on a new route'

With new regulations entering in 2026, Russell hopes that the team's performance can become more sustainable. "When you have a number of years with the same regulations, you sort of hone in on that sweet spot. And we've sort of been zigzagging over these past couple of years and as we've probably entered the last six months, those zigzags have narrowed and we've sort of really been able to fine-tune what it is we want from the car. I think It just goes to show that small changes can actually bring big improvements in performance," he said.

In addition to getting the car's set up right, team principal Toto Wolff must find the right driver to replace seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who will leave the team for Ferrari in 2025. Wolff intends to go down a 'new direction' for the team's recovery, with F2 driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli being heavily linked to the team. The team principal told Sky Sports on Saturday: "We've embarked on a route now to say we want to reinvent ourselves a little bit going forward. Antonelli definitely plays a part in that." With new upgrades to their car, and a fresh (yet to be confirmed) driver line up for 2025, Mercedes look set to head on a recovery journey in time for the new F1 era.