Can Hamilton bounce back with new Mercedes upgrades on home soil?

Can Hamilton and Merc bounce back?

Mercedes came away from Austria with their worst result since the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.

Austria has typically been a bit of a bogey circuit for Mercedes over the years, mainly due to how their power unit performs at high altitude, combined with it being one of Hamilton’s weaker circuits - by his own high standards.

Conversely, Mercedes have been unstoppable over the years at Silverstone, winning all but two races on British soil between 2013 and 2021.

Hamilton has a remarkable eight wins at the British venue, his last coming in 2021 after colliding with title rival Max Verstappen on the opening lap.

Mercedes are expected to bring a significant upgrade to the British GP as they look to continue their good momentum - Austria aside.

They still sit second in the constructors’ championship, a few points ahead of Aston Martin.

An upgraded Mercedes, at a circuit Hamilton has thrived at over the years - they should be in for a good weekend.

Records for Red Bull

Red Bull continued their unstoppable form at the Austrian Grand Prix, taking their ninth consecutive victory of the season.

It means Red Bull has now won 10 races in a row - stretching back to last year - making it a record for the team.

The last time they won nine straight races in a year was back in 2013 with Sebastian Vettel - so Silverstone could be another record for the Milton Keynes outfit.

McLaren currently hold the record for consecutive wins - 11 back in 1988.

Red Bull are very likely to equal it this weekend provided there’s no reliability issues.

Fantastic Lando

Lando Norris put in another spectacular display at the Red Bull Ring to come home fourth.

While he did have the McLaren upgrades - and teammate Oscar Piastri didn’t - Norris deserves an immense amount of credit for his performance.

While many rightfully say that Hamilton is still F1’s top Brit, given he is a seven-time world champion with over 100 wins to his name, Norris’ performances since the start of 2021 certainly put him in that conversation.

Naturally, the statistics don’t back it up given he’s spent his whole career in midfield machinery, however, he consistently gets the most out of the McLaren, destroying highly-rated teammates like Daniel Ricciardo in the process.

Silverstone will be a key test of McLaren’s new upgrade, particularly as Austria probably was more down to some more Norris magic - it is one of his strongest circuits after all.

Track limits 

After the drama in Austria, track limits are likely going to be a lively talking point at Silverstone this weekend.

There were over 1200 potential infringements for the FIA to look at during Sunday’s 71-lap race so it was no surprise there were delays in the penalties being handed out.

Still, it looked amateur on the FIA’s part and for the sport as a whole for the final result to be finalised five hours after the chequered flag.

Typically, Silverstone isn’t too difficult for track limit but it’s going to rear its head at some point I am sure.