Mercedes disappointed, but proud – James Allison
Mercedes’ technical chief James Allison was proud of his team because of the professional teamwork and harmony between Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, although the pace of Mercedes’ fierce rival Ferrari made him less relaxed before the summer holiday.
On the Friday of the Hungarian GP weekend, Mercedes presented itself in a very strong position, but that promising pace started to fade in the final practice session on Saturday when Ferrari demonstrated tremendous speed out of the box after a quite woeful Friday.
In the end, Mercedes secured the second row on a track which favoured its cars last year and saved the third and fourth place in the race thanks to the tangle between the quick Red Bull duo.
“We would have preferred to head into the summer break on the back of a result like the one we enjoyed in Silverstone, but in its own way this was a race that demonstrated many of the truly great things about this team,”
Mercedes applied team order in the race when Lewis Hamilton asked the team to force his team-mate Valtteri Bottas to let him pass by. However, the Briton had to give the position back in the last corner on the very last lap. Allison was delighted by the professionalism the two Mercedes-drivers carried out the position swaps.
“For the drivers to treat each other with such a degree of respect, that they both could have a go at attacking the Ferraris but then reverse the positions under intense pressure, was both extremely challenging and required a great deal of trust. To do it in such a professional manner, with the looming threat of Verstappen running right behind Valtteri, was a great thing,” said Allison.
Allison who left Ferrari last Spring and joined Mercedes this Spring is well aware of the need of getting the best out the W08 in an attempt to beat the probably only second-fastest, but persistent Italian team.
“After a well-earned summer break, we will look forward to resuming the fight in this intense and intriguing championship, and all our focus will be on ensuring that, come the end of the season, the Mercedes flags are flying high,” concluded the Briton.
