LEWIS Hamilton and George Russell have been tipped to take a shocking win in the French Grand Prix thanks to Mercedes’ “bulletproof” reliability.
That is the view of former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer, who thinks the team can finally be ready for the top step of the podium for the first time this season.
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Mercedes’ struggles were one of the themes of the season as the eight-time constructors champions lost pace.
Red Bull and Ferrari have largely dominated the season so far, but the signs are positive for the Silver Arrows.
Writing in his regular F1 columnex-Renault race Palmer said he believes the time has come for them to take the win.
He said: “We are halfway through a season where few would have expected Mercedes to have barely won a win so far and have a best finish of third place.
“The Silver Arrows, who have been exceptionally strong over the last ten years, built a car with the all-new regulations that appears to have some fundamental flaws. The level of bounce has led the team to chase their tails to solve their problems. to solve.
“Unbelievably, given the performance of their car, the team has managed to finish on the podium more often than not on a race weekend so far.”
Hamilton now has three podium finishes in a row after struggling early in the season with his “disastrous” and “ungovernable” car.
He is also the only driver to retire this season, with his team-mate Russell only having a non-finish after that dramatic clash with Zhou Guanyu at Silverstone.
Palmer added: “In fact, while Mercedes has taken podiums that their pace didn’t necessarily deserve thanks to their bulletproof reliability, it has also highlighted another quirk of 2022: only Lando Norris has secured a podium outside the top six so far this year with his drive at Imola, Mercedes’ most absentee race of the season.
“However, there are now signs that they are coming out on top and merging again to become real frontrunners again.
“It’s better to look at Hamilton’s race pace for the real pace of the Merc in Austria, and again on Sunday it seemed pretty close to the dominant Ferrari of Charles Leclerc after the seven-time champion hit the air. Therefore, he managed to cross a series of midfielders.
“The next French Grand Prix will be one of the smoothest circuits, mostly made up of medium and high speed corners. Mercedes has always done well there in the past and it certainly offers the best chance so far to take credit for the fight victory. this year.”
Despite the improvements made by Mercedes, they have failed to keep up with their rivals.
And halfway through the season, the World Championship certainly seems to go to Ferrari or Red Bull, with Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc are still the frontrunners for their teams.