Mercedes fear the high-speed nature of the next two grands prix at Imola and Portimao will exacerbate their perceived inferiority to Red Bull. The consecutive seven-time World Champions started the 2021 season with a narrow victory in Bahrain where Sir Lewis Hamilton held off Max Verstappen in a thriller. But it was a win that owed much to strategy, with Hamilton having track position out in front heading into the decisive stages, while in qualifying Verstappen had taken pole position by 0.388sec. Given the step forward Red Bull and their engine supplier, Honda, have made since last year, Mercedes think they themselves are second best at present – and that it could be underlined at...
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