Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend.
Mercedes could lose in the region of £7million if they fail to convert their points advantage over Ferrari into a P2 Constructors’ Championship finish. The Silver Arrows are four points better off than their closest rivals heading into the final race of the 2023 season.
According to calculations from Autosport, finishing second place in the Constructors’ Championship in 2023 will be worth £104.4m ($131m), while a third-place finish is valued at £97.2m ($122), meaning that there is plenty of prize money up for grabs in Abu Dhabi as well as pride.
The Silver Arrows have been the frontrunners to clinch second place throughout the 2023 season but a shaky end to the campaign has seen them slip back into the clutches of Frederic Vasseur’s team ahead of the season finale.
Charles Leclerc’s second-place result at the Grand Prix of Las Vegas played a significant role in the Scuderia’s return to competition before the championship round. After a disorganized weekend, Mercedes was forced to settle for P7 and P8 finishes, and the Monegasque driver climbed back onto the podium.
This weekend, the vibe in the Ferrari camp is definitely upbeat. Vasseur stated, “If you consider that we were 60 points behind them a couple of races ago, we are on a good path,” when speaking about his team’s chances of pulling off the comeback and taking second position.
“But Abu Dhabi will be another story, four points it’s nothing or a lot. And again we were able to perform in Monza, in Singapore, in Mexico during this weekend on different tracks with different weather conditions, different compounds, and we can be more than motivated before Abu Dhabi. The momentum is for us, and let’s see what happens.”
There was, however, a different attitude emanating from Mercedes ahead of Friday’s running at the Yas Marina Circuit though as Toto Wolff insisted that P2 would be of little consolation to him given the size of the deficit to champions Red Bull.
He clarified, “I think we’re going there on pretty much equal points. Let’s race.” Everything hinges on the final weekend. They completed the task well and with great speed. Let’s race; I believe we could have been on par today, but the outcome says otherwise.
To be honest, having P2 at the end of the season is a wonderful thing, but there isn’t much P2, P3 for me. In any case, it doesn’t particularly cheer me up. It doesn’t make [this year] any better for me, is that right?