Mercedes sets ultimatum: 'Definitely before the end of the year'

Mercedes don't have the best car on the grid this season. Despite this, the German racing stable managed to produce excellent results with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, the team continues to work hard on rapid improvements, with the engineers realising the difference between them and the competition.

The formation had become accustomed to playing for the top prizes in recent years, but for the time being this season has to settle for a place in the sub-top of the driver field. Red Bull Racing, for example, has a faster car than Mercedes, while Ferrari is proudly at the top of the rankings.

In practice, however, the Austrians barely managed to take advantage of the lead. Max Verstappen crashed out twice in the first three races and Sergio Perez did so once, with Mercedes jumping into the gap on several occasions. It ensures that Russell now occupies the second spot in the world championship and Verstappen is behind Hamilton.

Among other things, Mercedes is working hard to make the porpoising disappear, but when is it feasible to solve that problem? "Definitely before the end of the year," judges an engineer in conversation with Auto, Motor und Sport. "But it would be too bold to claim that we will be as good as Ferrari by then. That's a big job. They have a very good car on all types of circuits."