Mercedes reserve Nyck De Vries is reportedly at the forefront to replace Lewis Hamilton if the latter decides to retire

Nyck De Vries is reportedly at the forefront of replacing Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes, should the latter decide to either take a sabbatical or retire entirely from the sport.

According to a report by Express, the Silver Arrows have been considering the Dutchman as the “main option” to replace the seven-time world champion. De Vries currently serves as the reserve and simulator driver for the team.

The Dutch driver has a solid track record that makes him the prime candidate for a race seat at Mercedes, alongside George Russell. He won the 2019 Formula 2 championship, but more importantly, he is also the reigning Formula E champion, taking the sport’s first world championship with Mercedes last season.

Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff has often touted the young Dutchman as a future F1 star. Furthermore, De Vries also tested the W12 during the Abu Dhabi young driver test last month. This makes him stand out from other potential contenders within the Mercedes family, including Esteban Ocon and Stoffel Vandoorne.

Ocon is a known quantity, has recent F1 experience, and therefore would be the perfect partner for George Russell. The Frenchman is, however, locked into a long-term contract with Alpine.

While some rumors have previously suggested that Mercedes might be able to get Ocon released from his contract with Alpine, it seems increasingly unlikely. When asked about the prospect of a Mercedes opportunity in the future during last season, he affirmed his commitment to the French squad.

Meanwhile, Vandoorne lacks recent experience in F1, despite his two-year-long stint with McLaren between 2017 and 2018. The Belgian driver’s only stint in F1 was a disaster, however, as he struggled to even come close to his teammate Fernando Alonso’s pace.

---

Power unit unreliability did not affect Lewis Hamilton’s championship chances: Wolff

Toto Wolff is adamant that Mercedes’ power unit (PU) unreliability did not have a role in Lewis Hamilton losing the title. The German manufacturer's power units suffered from reliability issues throughout 2021 leading to both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas taking nearly double the assigned quota for PU components.

Speaking in a post-season interview with Auto Motor und Sport, the Austrian said:

“We didn’t lose the World Championship because of the engine, but it’s true that we had problems for the first time in eight years. At first, it only affected a component from a bad production run. This has developed into an epidemic in which the engines have lost more power over the period than they used to.”

Throughout the turbo-hybrid era, Mercedes’ power units have been a class above the rest, both in terms of power output and reliability. While the team enjoyed total superiority in the early years, other manufacturers, especially Ferrari and Honda, have managed to catch up to Mercedes in the last few seasons.

Between 2019 and 2021, gains made by Honda and Ferrari meant Mercedes no longer had an advantage in a straight line, leading the latter to further push the envelope in search of more performance.

The team made crucial gains ahead of the 2021 season, with the power unit delivering more power, especially when fresh. Lewis Hamilton was able to use his fresh PU in Brazil to scythe through the field in impressive fashion.

The PU, however, also degraded at an alarming rate, and oftentimes struggled to even last four races in a row.