Mercedes and Red Bull dominated the first two laps of the 2021 F1 season with one win apiece in Bahrain and Imola, while McLaren and Ferrari battled for the best of the rest.
While Max Verstappen beat Lewis Hamilton at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, there were signs over the weekend that the two leading teams’ advantage over the rest of the field has diminished.
Both McLaren and Ferrari managed to get at least one of their cars within 0.4 seconds of pole position in qualifying, while Lando Norris claimed a second career podium in third place after bravely beating a recovering Hamilton for a brief period left behind.
With McLaren and Ferrari showing signs of significant improvement over the winter, Wolff expects both teams to consider the battle at the top when F1 returns to the Algarve Circuit for consecutive races in Portugal and Spain.
“Last year was our first race in Portimão,” said Wolff. “It’s an exciting, undulating track that had great races in 2020. We also saw in qualifying and the first few laps that it is not easy to get the tires running properly.
“It’s still a pretty new track for everyone, which should make things interesting and mean we learn all weekend.
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“We expect another close battle with Red Bull and both McLaren and Ferrari could be there too. Let’s see how things develop in Portugal. “
When Hamilton slipped off the track after a rare mistake and Valtteri Bottas was wiped out in an accident with Williams driver George Russell, on one stage it looked like Mercedes might not score points at Imola.
But Hamilton’s great recovery run in P2 ensured that the reigning world champion maintained his lead in both the drivers ‘and the constructors’ standings towards Portimao.
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“Imola was a crazy race and a kind of Grand Prix that will be remembered for a long time,” said Wolff.
“There have been so many ups and downs and there were a few moments when we felt we weren’t getting any points at all. It was a roller coaster ride of emotions, from disappointment with Valtteri’s frightening accident to the thrill of Lewis’ recovery campaign.
“Running both championships almost felt like a free ticket because our rivals didn’t maximize the opportunity we were giving them. And it just shows what a challenging season we have ahead of us and how quickly things can change in Formula 1. “
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