Mercedes backed for F1 title challenge despite early-season struggles

Former double Formula 1 world champion Mika Hakkinen has said that Mercedes could yet get into the championship fight this season after a decent points haul in Melbourne.

The 2022 season has been a difficult one for Mercedes so far and yet they still find themselves in second place in the Constructors’ championship.

They deserve immense credit, then, for making the very best of a difficult situation with their car and, once they get it all hooked up, they’ll surely be competing with Ferrari and Red Bull on raw pace.

That said, Hakkinen was impressed with George Russell’s performance in Australia as he achieved a podium finish and, indeed, he is backing Mercedes to get involved in the championship fight as the season wears on.

“George drove a really strong race and that third place was very important,” Hakkinen wrote in his column Unibet.

“It’s really surprising to see him second in the World Championship, but his consistency and the car’s reliability has been impressive – fourth in Bahrain, fifth in Saudi Arabia and now a podium in Australia.

“It’s also noticeable that he is ahead of Hamilton, although the Safety Car had a big influence in Melbourne so I don’t think that is any reflection of relative performance.

“Lewis and George are both doing a fantastic job for Mercedes while the team sorts out its performance problems, and that is another reason Red Bull need to fix their reliability issues.

“This championship could easily develop into a three-way fight between these teams and Ferrari.”