Mercedes head into Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix in unfamiliar territory after their defeat to Ferrari in Formula One’s season opener, but Lewis Hamilton’s run of Shanghai success could give the reigning champions the edge they need to strike back at their resurgent rivals.
Sebastian Vettel dashed the German squad’s hopes of extending their three-year dominance into a fourth season by taking victory in last month’s Australian Grand Prix.
The four-time world champion finished nearly ten seconds ahead of Hamilton and new team-mate Valtteri Bottas, the first time since 2013 that the Brackley-based squad has failed to win the season-opening race.
The result handed Vettel the overall lead in the drivers’ standings with Hamilton seven points behind.
Together with Kimi Raikkonen’s fourth place, it also gave Ferrari the lead in the constructors’ tables ahead of Mercedes, also making it the first time since 2013 that a team other than the German squad has led the overall standings.
“If you think you are going to cruise to victory in the future, based on a track record of success, you’ll be proven wrong very quickly,” said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.
“You need to put the finger in the wound, identify your weaknesses and then respond. “Australia was a weekend full of lessons, now we go to China ready and excited for another battle.”
Mercedes, who have swept the drivers and constructors’ titles three years in a row, have won four of the last five races in China and started each of them from pole position.
Hamilton, meanwhile, has won in Shanghai four times, more than any other driver by far, and is the only man to have enjoyed back-to-back success at the track.
But, as the race in Melbourne showed, with the rules this year undergoing a major overhaul past form may count for little.
Ferrari will certainly be hoping so.
The last time the Italian squad began the season with consecutive wins was at the height of their dominance with Michael Schumacher in 2004, when the outfit swept to 15 victories from 18 races.
But following Vettel’s win in Australia, which ended a victory drought for the team stretching back toSeptember 2015 Ferrari will be out to prove they can be genuine contenders for the title.
“You really have to go step by step,” said Vettel, after handing Ferrari their first win in a season-opening race since Fernando Alonso won on his debut for the team in Bahrain in 2010.
“It’s good to know that we have a great car but it’s just the beginning: new regulations, new generations of cars so there will be a lot of progress.”