"The World Championship does not wait for you" - Former F1 driver says 'time is running out' for Mercedes

Eight-time world champion Mercedes has had a difficult start to the 2022 season given the new regulations and changes in design. Despite relatively strong performances from George Russell, Lewis Hamilton has had a hard time contributing points to the team. Former world champion Mika Hakkinen recently claimed that if the Silver Arrows are unable to turn around their performance soon, they will critically lose out on their chances for a record ninth consecutive world championship title.

In his Unibet column, Hakkinen wrote about the team's struggles so far this season, stating:

“Mercedes clearly has quite complex problems with their car. It seems amazing to say it, but the World Championships are already looking out of reach. For the first time in 10 years, neither Mercedes made it through to Q3 qualifying [at Imola], which is hard to believe. Clearly the car design is not working in several areas. To see Lewis Hamilton being lapped by Max Verstappen after 41 laps shows what a difficult time he and the team are having.”

The Finn further went on to write:

“They understand the key problems, but time is running out to find solutions. This is the problem in F1 – the World Championship does not wait for you, the races keep coming and there is so little time to sort major problems out.”

Despite the issues Mercedes are facing, Russell has managed a top-five finish in all four races so far with a podium at the 2022 Australian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton, however, failed to make it to the points at the Imola GP last weekend on a Sunday when his team-mate secured a solid P4 finish. While Mercedes took the blame for the car that the senior Briton described as "undrivable," the gap in performance between the two teammates has certainly gained some attention.

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Mercedes boss claims they have two of the three best drivers driving for the team

Toto Wolff claimed that he believes their team line-up for the season consists of two of the best three drivers on the current grid and that they do not deserve the car they've been given, referring to the struggles faced by the W13.

As reported by PlanetF1, the Austrian said:

“I’m very happy with the driver line-up, in that respect we have maybe two of the three best drivers on board.”

Praising George Russell's attitude to the team's problems in particular, he said:

“He approaches the situation very professionally and analytically. I like to see that there is no friction between the two. On the contrary, they are very productive and positive. They deserve a car and power unit that they can fight with at the front. They don’t deserve the way things are now.”

Mercedes are currently third in the constructors' standings, with McLaren quickly catching up from fourth.