Former F1 world champion Damon Hill has suggested that Mercedes could give up on this year’s quest to catch Red Bull as it would benefit them in the long haul.
The lower a team finishes in the Constructors’ Championship, the more time they will be allowed in the wind tunnel during the following season.
And with Red Bull already away and clear in the hunt for this year’s team title, Hill believes that looking ahead may be Mercedes’ best course of action.
“Ironically, the better Mercedes do the less scope they’ve got for the following year,” he told the Sky Sports F1 podcast.
“You kind of wonder whether Mercedes ought to be thinking about doing really badly between now and the end of the year.
“I think when you’ve got the budget and you can spend it but you can’t because you did so well the previous season, then it kind of makes you wonder whether you ought to do really badly.
“If you’re not going to win this year, you want to win next year.”
