"We have a level head and an element of realism" - Mercedes aiming to 'pick up' on other teams' mistakes for rest of 2022 F1 season

Mercedes are approaching the rest of the 2022 F1 season with a level head and an element of realism ahead of the forthcoming race in Hungary.

Mercedes claimed their first double podium finish at the 12th time of asking this year at Le Castellet (Circuit Paul Ricard) in what was an eventful race.

Lewis Hamilton started the race in P4 and was able to jump Red Bull's Sergio Perez at the start and climb to third. George Russell too made gains from P6 but his highlight came at the end of the race. The 24-year-old was able to pounce on Perez at the end of the final Virtual Safety Car after Nicholas Latifi's race ended prematurely.

Mercedes' cause was also aided by the fact that Ferrari's Charles Leclerc spun out on Lap 18. His teammate Carlos Sainz started the race from the back of the grid and could have been in with a shout for a podium place. Ferrari's confusing strategy calls, however, meant the best he could manage was P5.

Despite finishing ahead of Red Bull and both Ferrari cars, the Silver Arrows don't expect this to be a regular occurrence.

In his post-race debrief on social media, Mercedes' motorsport strategy director, James Vowles, was asked about the team's expectations for the race weekend at Hungaroring. The engineer said:

“I think where we are at the moment is clearly we are improving the car race on race and our race pace is getting there but qualifying isn’t. We are struggling really to get into the mix with them and there’s going to be certain tracks like Paul Ricard, Silverstone, where we are able to use that race pace to our advantage. Budapest? Less so. It’s very difficult at Budapest if you start behind to move back forward through the field again. There are opportunities, just more difficult.”

Vowles also feels it is difficult to split hairs between the two Red Bulls and Ferraris who are more often than not neck and neck with each other. The Briton added, saying:

“I think it is also fair to say that there are weeks where it is difficult to distinguish between the two Ferraris and the two Red Bulls. There are weeks when [Sergio] Perez’s pace is similar to [Max] Verstappen. Or, offset by simply a small amount. This weekend looked to be a larger difference. And in the case of [Carlos] Sainz, he had engine penalties, which meant he started from the back of the grid. Had he been in front, he was an incredibly fast car and would have been difficult to beat.”

The 43-year-old concluded by saying:

“So, we have a level head and an element of realism. We are here to improve and move forward but we are not there yet. We need others to make mistakes and to pick up the pieces from it and move forward.”

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Mercedes screwed up mechanically and aerodynamically in 2022 F1 season, admits Toto Wolff

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff admits that the Silver Arrows have a long way to go before they can challenge for wins in 2022.

Despite being able to record their first double podium of the season, the Austrian feels that Mercedes have screwed up on multiple fronts in 2022.

In an interview after the race, Wolff admitted that the team was caught unprepared for the 2022 regulation changes. He said:

“Before Paul Ricard, I would have said yes, now we wonder why we are a second behind Max Verstappen and six tenths behind Ferrari. We have a long way to go to be able to dream of victories. We screwed up mechanically, we screwed up aerodynamically, it’s never just one thing.’’

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton also feels it will be difficult for the Silver Arrows to get the upper hand against Ferrari and Red Bull at the 2022 F1 Hungarian GP. Nevertheless, the seven-time world champion is hoping to be able to bridge the gap to the top in the final race before the summer break.