Mercedes is the squad that has maintained its dominance for almost ten years. But due to the uncompetitive W-13, the squad was missing from last year’s title fight. For the whole first half of the season, the car had multiple issues. However, the Brackley-based squad benefited from their persistent hard work through the season and performed to their full potential at the Brazilian Grand Prix. On one side, where Sir Lewis Hamilton arguably had the worst season of his career, his new teammate George Russell really shone. Now, a certain F1 champion is stunned looking back at Silver Arrow’s year.

Russell got an incredible pole position at the Hungarian Grand Prix and his first Grand Prix victory in Brazil, despite having a problematic car for the better part of the season. The young Briton finished fourth, ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and fellow seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton. Many people have praised his performances, and most recently it was 1978 drivers’ champion Mario Andretti.

While talking to RTL,  Andretti said, “If you look at his performance last year, not only in qualifying but also his racing strength, you have to see him as a revelation.”

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At this point, everyone is aware of how challenging 2022 was for the Silver Arrows. Lewis Hamilton, the team’s star driver, failed to win even one Grand Prix during the entire season. However, Toto Wolff, the team’s boss, argues that his drivers were on par.

Toto Wolff backs George Russell and Lewis Hamilton after a challenging season

For the entire Mercedes team, the year 2022 served as a wake-up call as they experienced what it’s like to be on the losing end. George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, the team’s drivers, finished fourth and sixth, respectively, in the driver’s championship, placing the team in fourth overall. After a difficult season, Mercedes’ boss insisted that both of his were great, with Hamilton having greater difficulty adjusting to the underwhelming W-13.

The Wolff said in a conversation with Auto Motor und Sport, “I would see Lewis and George on a par in 2022. George got out of a car that was certainly difficult to drive. He got into one that was certainly difficult to drive as well. Lewis went from a perfect car to the W13. So he had to adapt a lot.”

“We had races where George was stronger and races where Lewis was stronger. But it wasn’t about who scored more points and beat the other. It was about developing a car together that was capable of winning. Both have great respect for each other. And both recognize the other’s performance. That’s a good constellation.”

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The German manufacturers had a heartbreaking season in 2022. But the team is surely known for making a great comeback. It was because of the crew’s ability to bounce back that Hamilton and Max Verstappen entered the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP with the same amount of points.

All said and done, can we claim that the Brackley-based team has found Lewis Hamilton’s ideal successor?