Mercedes' lap times were comparable to Red Bull'

Mathias Lauda, son of legendary F1 driver Niki Lauda, thinks Mercedes can already compete for victories if the team qualifies well. Lauda junior spoke to team boss Toto Wolff in Britain and says the German team is setting new targets daily for 2022.

Mercedes is no longer in the race for the championship. Therefore Wolff has set a new goal for Mercedes: winning races. According to Lauda junior, who joined ServusTV's Sport und Talk aus dem Hangar-7, this is an achievable goal.

Lap times comparable to Red Bull

Lauda analysed the Austrian Grand Prix and a few things struck him. "[Lewis] Hamilton lost a lot of time behind the Haas in the race, but his lap times were similar to Red Bull Racing's," he says. According to the Austrian, the problem is mainly the W13's lack of top speed.

"But I think - if Mercedes-Benz could start further in front - they would already be up there," says Lauda. One race earlier, at Silverstone, Hamilton showed he could battle with Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc in the final laps of the race. It must be said that the Monegasque was driving on significantly older tyres.