After the Brazilian GP, the Brit said he expects a competitive Mercedes in Las Vegas but remained cautious on whether it will be as strong as last year: "I expect us to be strong. I'll be very surprised if we're as strong as we were last year, but we hope so."

Asked if he can replicate last year's magic, Russell finally concluded: "I don't think so because we've improved the car for the 24 race season and that will probably hinder it on some of the extreme cases, and Vegas is an extreme."

The Brit is enjoying the best season of his career so far, claiming two wins and eight podiums, and establishing himself as the leading challenger just behind the trio battling for the title.

Despite Mercedes’ dominant performance in the 2024 edition, the Austrian team principal prefers to stay grounded and not raise expectations too high.

On paper, the W16 should thrive in cooler conditions, much like the W15 did last year. While the W15 isn’t remembered as one of the team’s best cars in recent seasons, Las Vegas provided ideal conditions that allowed Russell and Hamilton to extract a clear advantage over the rest of the field.