https://www.yahoo.com/sports/news/once-dominant-mercedes-gets-used-090416693.html
While I wish it was true, I think there is a lot more going on. Clearly Ferrari have improved, but staying ahead of MB is going to be difficult. Bottas ran a solid race, no mistakes and he had the measure of Ferrari. However its great to know that Ferrari are an actual threat vs. just driving around waiting for a mistake.
The question is:: "At what cost"? Merc and Ferr are 1.5 seconds faster than the rest of the field (5-th place on the grid.) It used to be the top 10-15 were all within 1 second of each other.
Top Dog? No. But certainly right therre with Mercedes. Circuit dependent IMO but with advantage to Mercedes in quali.
Way too early to say such a thing! But Ferrari is a real contenda this year. First time in many years.
Not sure we are top dog yet, but we are certainly able to actually challenge this season, and it looks like with a full effort, we have a good chance of taking the top step
MAY 4, 2017 Lauda admits Ferrari clearly ahead Mercedes needs to make "two steps forward" to catch up with Ferrari next time out in Barcelona. That is the claim of F1 legend Niki Lauda, who doubles as Mercedes' team chairman. Mercedes utterly dominated between 2014 and 2016, but so far in 2017 Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel has pulled out a lead in the championship. "Ferrari is clearly ahead," Lauda told the Austrian newspaper Krone. "We need to analyse what exactly is not working and take the right steps for Barcelona. Because all the teams will bring updates, Ferrari will make a step forward, we have to make two and Red Bull needs to make three," he added. It is said that Mercedes' biggest problem is inconsistency with the tyres, but Lauda says that's not the only issue. "We have too much weight in the car, we need to improve the aerodynamics, and above all we need to understand why the new Pirelli tyres do not work as they do on the Ferrari," he said. Finally, Lauda appeared to agree with reports that suggest Valtteri Bottas is on course for a new contract for 2018, after winning in Russia. "It was a perfect performance that I never expected," he said. "It was the right decision by Toto Wolff and myself to get Bottas on board. "Bottas is our man," Lauda added.
Don't get complacent Ferrari. Keep head down and work to develop car. Lauda saying "Bottas is our man" is great. They got a bit tired of dealing with Elton and are now kindly giving him perspective.
This. Now it's a different game in season requiring some different skills and probably some luck as well. We'll see who adapts and develops the best over the season. Exciting stuff.
The main issue is power, and it was clear MB still has a sizable advantage. The first corner drag race between Bottas and Vettel wasn't even a contest, where both had good starts. That's why Bottas could win. Ferrari is still behind, but the team and Vettel are doing everything else right, to the point of almost cancelling MB's power advantage. But all MB has to do is make marginal improvements, and no way to catch them, like it happened in Russia. But it's good to see Ferrari as a close second now. Hopefully they can achieve a championship win, but it'd be a small miracle IMO. If Bottas and Hamilton keep trading top finishes, and Vettel keeps them all, then it'd be more doable. Should be an exciting season, for a change.
Bottas easily overtaking Vettel at the start was really impressive. Bottas won the GP there. Ferrari still lacks that grunt power Mercedes enjoys, although it has been making progress since last year.
The German AMuS says in Sochi as well as Mexico, with the super long straights, P3 is the ideal starting position (citing engineering calculations without citing by whom/which team). This provides slipstream and clean side of the track. Hamilton got squeezed, luckily for Ferrari. Reading that, for a moment I though Mercedes was perhaps not showing it all on Saturday. But then Bottas was behind by such a small margin and Hamilton was useless all weekend.
Ferrari's strength is managing tires on long runs. They also qualified well in Russia, but we'll see how the qualys go in Spain. As many have mentioned here, they still lack power compared to MB.
MAY 5, 2017 Ferrari feared by Mercedes in 2017 says Marchionne Sergio Marchionne says he is happy Ferrari is now "feared" once again by its top F1 competitor. After a decade-long title drought, Sebastian Vettel is leading the world championship after the opening four races of 2017. "We have made significant progress," the Ferrari president is quoted by Italian media, including La Repubblica newspaper. "Some would call our recovery miraculous compared to 2016," Marchionne added. "Ferrari is competitive once again and feared by our adversaries in Stuttgart," he said, clearly referring to Mercedes.
MAY 5, 2017 Villeneuve surprised by Ferrari in 2017 Jacques Villeneuve says he is surprised by Ferrari's form so far this year. After three years of utter Mercedes dominance, Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel is leading the world championship after four races in 2017. "I admit to being surprised," Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, told Italian blogger Leo Turrini. But the French Canadian, who is now a television pundit for Italian television, also admitted to being surprised by Valtteri Bottas' Sochi win. "I'm also cautious," said Villeneuve. "Sochi is his favourite circuit and he won't be destroying Hamilton on every track like that. "I also don't know if he's psychologically ready to fight for the championship." And Villeneuve said he will be surprised if Red Bull manages to catch up with Mercedes and Ferrari this year, even though the team is planning a 'B' car for Barcelona. "They're too far back," he said. "Maybe they can win a race or two if they're lucky, but with that car, I don't see them at the level of Ferrari and Mercedes. "My favourite for the title is Vettel," said the 46-year-old. "Ferrari is doing a great job and Seb can handle the pressure." Villeneuve also defended Ferrari's other driver, Kimi Raikkonen, even if some think the Finn is clearly Vettel's 'number 2'. "Raikkonen is outstanding and much more than a number 2," he said. "It surprises me that people are so determined to not realise it. "At most the difference between him and Vettel is one tenth per lap. He's also the perfect teammate who never creates tension with the team."
MAY 10, 2017 Hulkenberg tips Ferrari for title Nico Hulkenberg has hailed the fight at the top of formula one this year. The German is impressing after switching to the renewed and improving French works team Renault for 2017, but he admitted his eye has also been on the exciting fight for the title. "Not for a long time have the top two teams been so close together," Hulkenberg told Germany's Sport1. "It's a very good battle for formula one. "Mercedes has been consistently at the highest level for years, but I'm extremely impressed with Ferrari at the moment," he added. "They've built a super car and that's why I'm going to tip Ferrari," Hulkenberg added. "But both teams are in a position to win. Who will ultimately become world champion is impossible to predict."
