Hill predicts double win Mercedes: 'There's going to be an incident'

For the French Grand Prix weekend, the differences between Red Bull Racing and Ferrari are expected to be very small. Mercedes, too, is keen to get into the fray at the Circuit Paul Ricard, which has historically suited the German team well. But will Lewis Hamilton and George Russell actually succeed? Damon Hill is sure: it will be a one-two punch.

At the F1 Nation-podcast, former Formula 1 drivers Gerhard Berger and Damon Hill are asked to predict the top three in France. While Berger expects Max Verstappen to win the race ahead of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, Hill has a completely different scenario in mind.

Hill predicts Mercedes one-two in GP France

"I'm gonna go with Lewis Hamilton," said the Briton, who expects there could well be an incident between Verstappen and Leclerc. "We've been talking about how well they've been getting on. I think that first corner is going to be a bit tricky. Let's say Charles loses his front wing or Max gets a puncture or something like that," Hill fantasises.

The 1996 World Champion continues his story with an even more optimistic prediction. "Maybe even on pure pace, the Mercedes springs a surprise because I think in race trim, Lewis has on occasion been very quick," he continues. Hill thinks there might even be a double win for Mercedes, with Hamilton in first place, followed by Russell and Sainz.

Reacting to his former colleague's prediction, Berger wonders aloud what Hill's nationality is and whether he has maybe had one drink too many. He does not entirely agree with the Brit's prediction and points out that Verstappen and Leclerc have always given each other enough space so far, but acknowledges that things could well go wrong sometime this year.