Brackley's team has no technical updates to contrast with the continuous evolutions of Red Bull on the RB16B, but does not give up fighting for the two world titles: the Star's engineers have decided to take risks on the power unit by raising the overboost of the turbo and taking the hybrid strategy to the extreme, given that they will also unmask a fourth engine for Hamilton. Mercedes is launching a strategy to aim for the eighth drivers 'world title with Lewis Hamilton and also the eighth Constructors' title, in the knowledge that the W12 will no longer have technical updates after development has been blocked for some time to devote all resources to single-seater 2022.
The black arrow, like all single-seaters, will only benefit from the adaptations of the car to the track, while on the Red Bull side it is desirable to have other innovations to further increase the competitiveness of the RB16B.
Max Verstappen will go to Russia with a five-point advantage over the champion hepta: the Dutchman gained two points in the Sprint Qualifying in Monza. The Star was unable to take advantage of a favorable track like that of the "temple of speed" which, at least on paper, had to be more suitable for James Allison's car.
The crash at the First Variant which led to the withdrawal of the two challengers for the world championship froze the positions. It was a stop that played in favor of the Dutchman because only seven appointments remain on the calendar, even if Max will still have to pay three positions on the grid in Sochi, leaving a theoretical advantage to Hamilton.
At Brackley they are perfectly aware that the world championship match will be the most complicated since the hybrid era in F1: Lewis' experience may have weight, but the feeling is that Red Bull has an overall better package than the champion one. of the world in charge.
So Mercedes must focus everything on its strength: the power unit. It has not yet been decided when to unmark engine 4 for Hamilton, as Valtteri Bottas has already paid the penalty at Monza. The intention is to force the use of the thruster in the hope of hitting two objectives by being able to count on a fresh unit.
At the Brixworth test bench they are evaluating how far to push the turbo boost to force Honda to chase, perhaps going to affect that threshold of reliability that the Japanese seem to have reached.
In Mercedes they are ready to take risks by playing on the qualities of the power unit which also allowed McLaren to return to winning a GP.
Hywel Thomas, Managing Director of Mercedes-AMG HPP, is convinced that performance can still be obtained from the engine by exaggerating certain parameters of the turbocharging system and the hybrid without running the risk of affecting reliability.
If the performances are not enough, we go and scrape the barrel of duration with all the means available: Sochi, therefore, will be an important verification on the progress of a world that is anything but defined and which, indeed, ensures an unpredictability that goes far beyond the tracks that should favor the characteristics of one machine rather than the other.
Der Mann ist halt noch nicht gewöhnt, dass nicht mehr alles von Maschinen gesteuert wird, ausser das er den Schrauber halten muss 
