Mercedes-Benz

CHRISTIAN HORNER has admitted that he ‘aged about 25 years’ during the climax to last night’s thrilling US Grand Prix.The Red Bull boss could only watch and hope as Max Verstappen was chased down by Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton.
Christian Horner embraces Sergio Perez after the raceCredit: Getty
Max Verstappen hoists his trophy into the airCredit: Rex
While appearing faster than Hamilton in Austin, Texas – the Dutchman’s last pit stop came eight laps earlier than the Brit’s – giving the seven-time world champion fresh rubber for his epic late chase.
Despite his ageing tyres, Verstappen somehow managed to stay out of DRS range as the race reached its crescendo, finishing just a second before his rival.
Following the race, in which Red Bull’s Sergio Perez also grabbed third, Horner told Sky Sports that he ‘aged about 25 years’ during the closing stages.
He then added: “I really didn’t think he was going to pull that off.
“Lewis had eight laps newer tyres, and the first set of hard tyres that came off were pretty much down to the canvas.
“We were thinking we’re not going to have much at the end here but Max managed that tyre in the last stint.

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“You know Lewis at the end of the race is so strong and he had gone long and got himself an advantage.
“I think to lose in the last few laps would have been really painful but Max held on, he did a great job, managed the job really smartly and had just about enough at the end there.”
Verstappen himself described the last few laps as ‘fun’ and his victory ‘incredible’.
He said: “Of course we lost out in the start so we had to try and do something else,.
“The tyre wear is quite high around this track, we went aggressive and I was not sure it was going to work but the last few laps were fun. A bit sideways through the high-speed corners but super happy to hang on.
We gave it everything we had and they were just quicker than us this weekend, for whatever reasonLewis Hamilton
“It was exciting. The whole race the pressure was on, not knowing how quick Lewis was going to get you. It’s incredible to win here.”
The crucial victory sees Verstappen go 12 points clear of Hamilton with just five races remaining.
Hamilton, 36, said: “We gave it everything we had and they were just quicker than us this weekend, for whatever reason.
“I thought for a second that we might be able to win the race.”

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LEWIS HAMILTON has been dealt another blow in his pursuit of the world championship as Toto Wolff admitted Mercedes engines are ‘hanging on for dear life’.Hamilton was hit with a ten-place grid penalty at the Turkish Grand Prix last time out after getting his fourth new engine of the season fitted.
Lewis Hamilton’s title challenge could be wrecked by ongoing engine failures for MercedesCredit: Alamy
Drivers are permitted three Internal Combustion Engines (ICEs) per season.
Now in the United States this weekend, three of the four teams who use Mercedes ICEs are taking engine penalties.
Sebastian Vettel of Aston Martin and Williams’ George Russell will start from the back of the pack in Austin tomorrow as they got their fourth ICEs.
And Valtteri Bottas is on to his SIXTH engine so will begin Sunday’s race five places below his qualifying position.
That is Bottas’ third penalty in four races as concerns rise for Mercedes boss Wolff – but the constructors are not entirely sure what the problems are as the grid penalties mount.
The team principal said: “I think you see that we are suffering with reliability this year.

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“We are going on to the sixth engine, I believe it is for Valtteri, and it’s not something we choose to do.
“On the contrary, we are trying to really get on top of the problems and we haven’t understood [them] fully.
“I think we are a step closer now, so it’s not always that we are literally easy with having the engines.
“We are hanging on for dear life in supplying all customers and that is not trivial.”
Hamilton spent some time in Los Angeles before heading over to Texas for the race weekend.
The reigning F1 champ trails Max Verstappen by six points with six races remaining this season.
And Wolff knows the ongoing engine issues could cost the team and Hamilton dear come the end of the year.
The Austrian added: “I think when you look at Monza, for example, Valtteri had to start from the back and we are losing points on the way.
“We are trying to push the performance every year, and this year we’ve come to a point where that has cost us points.

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“Over the last seven or eight years, that mindset has won us races and championships.
“So I would have hoped for a few less penalties and use less engines, but this year it has really hit us hard.
“McLaren and Aston Martin are more fortunate and in that respect, we just have to take it on the chin and do the best possible job.”
Toto Wolff knows the problems could derail his team’s 2021 seasonCredit: Getty
Valtteri Bottas is on to his sixth ICE of the campaign as the issues mount and more penalties hitCredit: Getty More

LEWIS HAMILTON is unsure as to why Mercedes have quickened up in their last two races.The Brit, 36, was victorious in Sochi a fortnight ago.
Lewis Hamilton gave credit to Valtteri Bottas and the rest of the teamCredit: AFP
The Brit’s Mercedes has zoomed in recent weeksCredit: AFP
While team-mate Valtteri Bottas took home first place in Istanbul last weekend.
Asked why Mercedes have improved in recent weeks, Hamilton was perplexed.
He said: “We haven’t done anything to the car so I don’t really know why that is the case.
“I think the two tracks that we’ve just driven on have maybe suited us a little bit more.”
Six-time world champion Hamilton currently trails rival Max Verstappen by six points in the driver’s standings.
But Mercedes have a healthy 36 point lead in the constructor’s title race.

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Hamilton continued: “The car has been feeling good.
“It felt great this weekend and moving forwards, Valtteri did a great job.
“If he can continue to perform like that over the next races, it will be good for the team and if the car continues to behave as it has this weekend, that is good for us.”
The season continues in Austin, Texas this Sunday.
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MERCEDES and Red Bull’s ongoing rivalry has extended further than just on the track. The two teams have been involved in a hilarious social media exchange after the weekend’s Turkish GP.
Verstappen (L) and Perez celebrate on the podium in IstanbulCredit: Getty

Red Bull’s cars raced in a special one-off livery in Istanbul that paid tribute to engine manufacturer Honda – who are leaving F1 at the end of the season.
And the Mercedes social media team took some time out of their battle for the constructors title ahead of the weekend to predict a tough race for their rivals.
Mercedes themselves used a special 125th year livery at the 2019 German GP – which saw crashes for both Lewis Hamilton and Valteri Bottas.
Their Twitter account posted pictures from that day, with the caption: “Special livery? We tried that once.”
They then followed it up with a meme that read: “We looked good, but at what cost?”
But after Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez finished second and third for Red Bull, their own social media team responded in sensational style.

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They tweeted a picture of the pair on the podium, with two trophy emojis, saying: “[Two podiums] in a special livery? We tried that once,” followed by a winking face.
And that wasn’t all – with Red Bull really hammering the nail in.
They posted a follow-up tweet with video highlights from the weekend’s two-three, saying: “Curse? What curse? Rounding off a great weekend for the Bulls.”

But to their credit Mercedes came back with a hilarious response.
Replying to Red Bull’s tweet, they posted a picture from the Netflix sensation Squid Game of the ‘killer doll’ which has gone viral in recent days.
After all their own Valteri Bottas did end up winning in Istanbul to extend their lead over Red Bull at the top of the constructors standings.
However Hamilton could only manage fifth after a late pit-stop, leaving him trailing Verstappen by six points in the driver standings with five races left in the season.

Bottas celebrates on the podium after winning Turkish Grand Prix ahead of Verstappen More

PIRELLI are backing Mercedes’ decision to change Lewis Hamilton’s tyres following a spat between the Brit and his Formula 1 team. The seven-time world champ was angered by engineers ordering him to do a pit stop at the Turkish Grand Prix as he ended up finishing fifth . 
Pirelli agree with Mercedes’ decision to have Lewis Hamilton do a pit stop at the Turkish Grand PrixCredit: AP
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff insists it would have been a ‘risky move’ to not change Hamilton’s tyres mid-raceCredit: Refer to Caption
Hamilton, 36, began in eleventh spot on the grid due to an engine change penalty but made up ground to reach third place with ten laps to go. 
However, the Briton, who had hoped to keep using the same tyres he began the race with, was called to the pits with seven laps to go
And he was heard forcifully telling his team ‘we shouldn’t have come in’  when informed of the gap between him and Pierre Gasly, who ended up finishing sixth. 
Hamilton said after: “I feel like I should have stayed out. My gut feeling was to stay and I feel that’s what I should have done.
“I am frustrated with myself. I lost a few points, but that’s life.” 
Following the race, Esteban Ocon revealed his tyres were virtually kaput after using the same set for the 58-lap Grand Prix, unlike Hamilton.
After the contest, the Alpine driver told reporters: “One more lap, I think we would’ve got a puncture. It was a risky bet. We made it work.”
When quizzed on if Hamilton could, like Ocan, have completed the race without a tyre change, Pirelli’s Formula 1 head Mario Isola said: “Looking at the tyres after the race, I would say no, or at least it was really at the limit.

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“The wear of the tyres, especially at the end of the race, they were running basically on the construction. 
“It was a bit dangerous to push the boundaries. But I fully understand that in race conditions they have to maximise their result.
“Every car is different, so the level of wear is different, also depending on how hard during the race they push. 
“But more or less all the tyres had exposed cords, not only on Ocon’s car, most of the cars that stopped after lap 47/48 were completely finished.
“We know the new tarmac (in Istanbul) is more abrasive and has more grip compared to last year and the track was not dry but still abrasive. So it was really, really at the limit. 
“I was suggesting to our allocated engineers to warn the teams to change the tyres and not to go to the end because it was a risky move.”
And Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff concurred with his staff it was ‘clear’ Hamilton would not have completed the race without the tyre change. 
Wolff said: “The intermediate obviously looked really scary, but we thought that we could maybe hang out there and finish third with not stopping.
“So we balanced between pitting, taking it very conservative, fighting with Leclerc and Perez on the track for P3, or taking a little bit of a gamble and either winning or finishing third.
Hamilton’s rival Max Verstappen is currently six points ahead of him in the race for the championship title.Credit: Splash
“Then we saw Leclerc dropping off and Lewis started dropping off and it was clear that we wouldn’t make it to the end.” 
The result at the Istanbul Park Circuit saw Hamilton fall six points behind championship opponent Max Verstappen with six races remaining this season. 
If Hamilton had finished third behind Verstappen – who ended up second behind victor Valterri Bottas – there would have been a gap of just a point between the Brit and his Dutch rival. 

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