Only one race remains before Formula One takes its annual rest for the summer – a break that after the Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend may weigh heavier on some shoulders than others. The next few days will be potentially as instructive in the fight for the world championship as any we have seen thus far. Only a sliver separates Lewis Hamilton from Sebastian Vettel at the top of the table but Budapest has more import than just who will hold the lead when racing returns at Spa at the end of August.
The gap between Mercedes and Ferrari has been close all season. From the moment the Scuderia hit the ground running at testing we saw a proper fight at the front. But with new regulations it was also clear that victory would not necessarily go to the swiftest at the start of the season but the team who could develop their car most effectively to its end
During the early races the two teams were on a par, indeed, if anything in race pace Ferrari seemed to have the edge over the previously dominant Mercedes. The latter had struggled with balance, set-up and putting their tyres into the correct temperature operating window. They had been set back it is understood by the FIA ban on the suspension system they had intended to use and were learning about the car on the go. Hamilton in particular struggled in Sochi and Monaco. The latter was noted by the team’s executive director, Toto Wolff, as the point at which they identified their problems and began to turn things round.
Hamilton now trails Vettel by one point after his victory at the British Grand Prix and he has some momentum but more ominously for Ferrari he may well now have the car under him he has sought all season…
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