Mercedes: a first double since Brazil 2022
The German team pulled off a surprise at Spa-Francorchamps on Sunday July 28. Mercedes finished the Grand Prix in the top two places. A first in over a year and a half.
Will Mercedes be the team to beat at the end of this season? There is reason to ask questions. The German team has just achieved a third consecutive victory in F1. Two thanks to George Russell and one with Lewis Hamilton. Toto Wolff’s men are the only ones to have achieved such a feat this season.
Beyond this third consecutive success, the Silver Arrows achieved a one-two finish at the Ardennes slide. A performance that the German cars had not been able to achieve for many races. The last time the grey single-seaters monopolized the top two spots on the podium was in 2022, at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
At the time, George Russell had achieved his first success in F1 just ahead of his teammate, Lewis Hamilton. A year and a half after this race, repeating such a feat at Spa seemed unthinkable. Mercedes certainly had an interesting pace, but McLaren and Max Verstappen appeared much stronger this weekend in Belgium.
Just before the summer break, Mercedes remains the fourth force in terms of points scored on the grid. But the German brand continues to reduce its gap with Ferrari, with just 56 units ahead (284 versus 340). McLaren is now less than 100 points behind (361).
