In previous years it could be argued that if there was ever a mistake, Mercedes was careful with strategy, but this season they really did it, and some brave calls from the team helped Lewis Hamilton get three of the four races into it win so far this year.
After winning the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday, Hamilton has a 14-point lead over title rival Max Verstappen, whose Red Bull team was hit by a couple of championship blows from James Vowles and his team of smart people.
Twice they fooled everyone and twice their calls paid off in the best possible way, suggesting their strategy guys, aside from an increasingly powerful car, are setting standards to counter the Red Bull threat.
Mika Hakkinen, perhaps with inside information, suggests that the world champions had planned the strategy throughout the 2021 Grand Prix weekend in Spain and, as a result, all the steps were covered.
After the fascinating race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, two-time F1 World Champion Hakkinen wrote in his Unibet column: “Trust is an important part of the teamwork we see in Formula 1 and Lewis Hamilton’s 98th victory was on that The confidence he put in his racing strategists when they invited him for a second pit stop during the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday.
“To some people this looked like a mistake, leaving Lewis 22 seconds behind race director Max Verstappen, but Mercedes strategists – based in their team headquarters in England – knew the world champion had the pace to catch and overtake the Red Bull Honda.
“Mercedes had planned that all weekend. They gave both Lewis and Valtteri Bottas a two-stop strategy option on Sunday by having two sets of medium tires available – one new set and one used set – while Red Bull Max only gave one set of media for the race.
“This is so typical of Mercedes and the reason Lewis and Valtteri know that they are currently driving for the best team in Formula 1. Not only is the car fast enough to compete with the very strong Red Bull, the team is also right at the forefront with strategy calls.
“Even when both Lewis and Valtteri lost their positions at the beginning and Lewis fell behind Max and Valtteri behind Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, they were able to recover from 1st and 3rd on a track where overtaking is extremely difficult.
“It was fantastic to see Lewis take his 100th pole position on Saturday, but with the top 3 in just 0.132 seconds, we knew the race was going to be close.
“My former McLaren team-mate Ayrton Senna achieved 65 pole positions during his career and my arch-rival Michael Schumacher the previous record of 68, but Lewis has been incredibly consistent throughout his 15-year career in F1.
“Both teams, McLaren and Mercedes, gave him fast and reliable cars. But it’s Lewis who pushed the envelope and it’s a brilliant achievement.
“I don’t think it will be easy for anyone to break Lewis’ records in the future, also because of the way Formula 1 works now. The rules and regulations between the FIA, Formula 1 and the teams will be much more closely coordinated, and the new budget ceiling is intended to create more equal opportunities.
“Perhaps no one will ever beat Lewis’ pole position record and his 98th win on Sunday means he could easily take 100 wins by the middle of this season.
“But never say it was impossible because we all thought Michael’s records would last forever!” added Hakkinen a 20-time Grand Prix winner.
The challenger – Verstappen – Hakkinen preferred: “I thought Max did a really great job again this weekend, was so close to pole and then took the lead with an aggressive start.
“Red Bull is very often the fastest at pit stops. So it was a surprise that Max’s pit stop lasted four seconds. The team was unprepared because Max suddenly made the decision to pit. It took her two seconds.
“When you’re fighting Mercedes, you can’t afford to waste time. It didn’t affect the result, as Lewis was so quick after his second pit stop that he could catch Max at one second per lap anyway.
“With a view to these first four races, Mercedes has done a fantastic job of using strategy to gain an advantage over Red Bull. Max’s small mistakes gave Lewis a chance. “
Ferrari seems to be on the rise after a positive weekend in Spain with Charles Leclerc taking a solid and brave fourth and Carlos Sainz seventh, which has been a better afternoon for the Reds for a while.
Hakkinen gave his opinion: “Charles started and finished fourth on Sunday, the latest strong and consistent performance of the Monegasque. Ferrari took a good step this year. With its new engine, they have a close battle with McLaren behind Mercedes and Red Bull.
“Charles has qualified fourth three times in the first four races, usually faster than Sergio Perez’s Red Bull. If Ferrari can find a little more power, Charles is right there looking for a podium. “
Hakkinen also touched on the fact that drivers who are new to their teams this year have problems: “The problem for Charles’ team-mate Carlos Sainz, along with drivers like Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin), Fernando Alonso (Alpine) and Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren), this year’s three test days in the preseason gave new driver-car combinations almost no time to settle in.
“These drivers use the early races to get to know the car, learn how to interact with their teams, and make changes to improve performance. This was one of the interesting things to watch this year.
“I think we’ll see some of these drivers make great strides at the next Grand Prix. Fernando has already started putting together some good times and Daniel finished a good 6th place for McLaren on Sunday.
“It gives us a lot to see behind the battle between Lewis, Max and Valtteri at the front,” said Hakkinen.
W12 Tuesday 
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– Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@ MercedesAMGF1) May 11, 2021
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