Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton have been backed to return to the title-challenging frame ‘in two or three races’ following their tricky start to the 2022 season. So far this year, Ferrari have replaced the Silver Arrows as Red Bull’s leading competitors in the drivers’ and constructors’ championships.
Hamilton had to rely on late Red Bull fuel issues on the opening weekend in Bahrain to seal a spot on the podium behind Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. But the seven-time world champion was eliminated in Q1 in Saudi Arabia and finished in P10.
His team-mate George Russell has shown more consistency, finishing in P4 and P5 in the first two races, but he was over 32 seconds slower than Bahrain Grand Prix winner Max Verstappen last time out. Toto Wolff and his team face a significant amount of work to win a record-extending ninth successive constructors’ crown this season.
But Flavio Briatore believes it’s only a matter of time before Hamilton and Mercedes are back in the picture. He told Rai Radio: “In two or three races, Mercedes will also be in the fray. Hamilton fights, doesn’t give up and stays there as a great champion. I’m sure he’ll be back. [Fernando] Alonso is doing well too.”
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Briatore has a history of leading an F1 team with Benetton Formula and Renault F1. And the Italian has admitted that if he currently had a team in the pit, he would sign Verstappen because, despite his praise for Hamilton, he believes the Dutchman is the ‘best driver in Formula 1’.
He said: “I would buy Verstappen. He is the best driver in Formula 1 and we saw that already last year. He has more experience this year. He fought for the world title and already won. But if I had the money, I would have bought both [Charles Leclerc too].”
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However, Briatore’s loyalties this season seem to lie with Ferrari, who he rejected in 1994. The Scuderia mean business in 2023, with their engine thriving across the grid, and Leclerc was unfortunate to miss out on two wins out of two at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit last Sunday.
“Ferrari has a car that can be competitive all year,” Briatore added. “But anything can happen in a championship fight. The important thing is that the car works well. They’re going to make it to the end and hopefully they’ll win. It will depend more on the drivers and the strategies.”
