Despite a tenacious race effort from George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes’ hopes for a pole position victory slipped away. However, a closer analysis of their weekend performance has led competitors to reassess Mercedes’ standing. McLaren team principal Andrea Stella acknowledged that Mercedes now delivers a car that, in dry conditions, outperforms his team at certain points in race weekends.
Stella noted, “I mentioned to some colleagues on Thursday that Mercedes is among the fastest teams. Their lap times in Monaco and recent events were out of our reach. We couldn’t match those times even with low fuel and an optimized engine. They clearly have potential and are starting to harness it.”
A notable example occurred on Saturday morning in Canada, where Hamilton led the final free practice with a lap 0.374 seconds faster than Max Verstappen’s Red Bull. While the use of an extra set of soft tires might have inflated this gap, it highlighted Mercedes’ genuine pace.
Reflecting on the weekend, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff emphasized Hamilton’s remarkable performance in FP3. Wolff stated, “Lewis did an exceptional lap in FP3, and his long run was extraordinary. There was significant pace.”
Hamilton’s long run in FP3 was especially telling, as not many teams conducted race runs due to weather interruptions on Friday. His lap times included: 18.224, 18.278, 17.969, 17.533, followed by an outlier, then 17.559 and 18.490. Comparatively, Verstappen’s run produced: 18.777, 18.419, 17.980, 17.884, 17.982, 17.935, 18.334, 18.889, and 18.327. The data suggests Hamilton’s run was slightly better, though fuel loads and track conditions could have influenced this.
Mercedes’ impact in Canada extended beyond lap times. Throughout the season, the W15 has shown speed but struggled with consistency, particularly in low and high-speed corners. In Canada, Mercedes’ strong form was more evident, indicating a promising trajectory for the team.
