F1 Today | Hamilton's title hopes boosted, while Mercedes reveal cause of Belgian GP issue

The chances of Hamilton becoming an eight-time F1 drivers' champion have been boosted by Mercedes' decision not to prioritise one driver over another. Antonelli strengthened his title ambitions with a win at Spa and now sits 45 points above Hamilton, and 50 ahead of George Russell.

Despite Russell's own hopes taking a major dent following his DNF after a collision with Hamilton, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has said the Silver Arrows will not yet prioritise one driver over another based on championship standings.

Speaking to the media, including GPblog, Wolff was asked whether Antonelli's advantage was enough to start issuing team orders should Russell be ahead of his teammate. In response, Wolff pointed out to the Barcelona GP, when battling between Russell and Antonelli played a key role in Hamilton's maiden Ferrari win.

Wolff said: "After the learning that we had in Barcelona, the kind of mission that we set for today is that we are not going to lose time with each other. We don't want any yo yoing and then have a Ferrari or a Red Bull breathing down our neck and losing a victory as it happened in Barcelona."

Wolff stressed Mercedes will "never take a victory away" from either driver, emphasising as strong a focus on the Constructors' as with the Drivers'. He continued: "If it meant that Kimi or George were ahead, this is what we would do."

Meanwhile, Mercedes has identified the issue all teams with the German manufacturer's power unit experienced during the opening lap of the Belgian Grand Prix. It was confirmed to GPblog that the problem has been resolved ahead of upcoming Hungarian Grand Prix

Despite making a strong start, both Mercedes cars lacked pace compared to their Red Bull Racing and Ferrari rivals after Turn 1, losing several positions. That played a key part in Russell losing ground down the Kemmel Straight and tangling with Hamilton.

Initially, Toto Wolff also said after the race that all Mercedes-powered cars had suffered from the same issue in the opening phase. After the team's investigation at the factory, those suspicions were confirmed: the problem was caused by a software issue.

“Basically, we had a boost issue on both cars from Turn 1 to Turn 5. This has affected both George and Kimi and we have seen both of them losing ground after a good start,” Simone Resta, the team's deputy technical director explained. It has now been confirmed to GPblog that the McLarens, the Alpines, and the Williams cars also experienced the same issue.