2019 Report – Mercedes: For Niki

Once again, Mercedes left only scraps for its rivals in this 2019 season: 15 wins, 10 pole positions, and 9 fastest laps. While this may not be the best statistics recorded by the team in 2016 with its 19 wins and 20 pole positions, compared to the three wins for Ferrari and Red Bull, the result is unchallenged.

However, this year has been rather unusual for the German team, which lost one of its most influential members, the triple world champion Niki Lauda, who passed away shortly before the Monaco Grand Prix. The Austrian was one of the most important figures in Mercedes’ comeback and successes since 2010. He was the one who convinced Lewis Hamilton to join the star-emblazoned firm, and his racing expertise combined with his extensive experience in driver relations often helped Mercedes navigate situations where other teams would have gotten bogged down.

In the evening of his sixth championship, Lewis Hamilton did not forget to pay tribute to this man who has been instrumental in the impressive harvest of titles and victories of a team that has become the reference in Formula 1 over the past six years.

Even Valtteri Bottas allowed himself to dream of a possible title after a thunderous start to the season. The Finn had his best season in 2019 but without genuinely challenging his teammate after a long slump during the summer. It was at this time that Mercedes considered promoting Esteban Ocon alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2020. But the team’s leadership wisely understood that success is built through continuity and foresight. Naturally, and even though Mercedes denies it, Lewis Hamilton remains the number one driver of the team.

If there was an area for improvement to find for Mercedes in 2020, it might be this one: namely the management of its “second driver.” Bottas is ambitious, but how can he take on a six-time world champion who has secured the majority of the team’s successes? The transfer market, which will be very open next year, might shake things up.