"Mercedes' advantage over Red Bull was a one-off"

La Gazzetta dello Sport thinks the latter. In an analysis, the medium reports that Mercedes' lead was only temporary, and that Lewis Hamilton's victory was mainly due to the tyre management of the Mercedes W12. The circuit of Portimão would therefore not be a good gauge, and in Barcelona we should see how things really stand.

Just a temporary advantage for Mercedes?

"The result of the Portuguese GP could be interpreted as the 'end of the illusion' that Mercedes would no longer be dominant, but that is too short. All weekend there was only a temporary advantage for Mercedes," writes Paolo Filisetti. "The cars are very close to each other, but the RB16B is much more stable and can generate greater, more balanced downforce."

According to Filisetti, the tyres were the reason Red Bull failed to win the race in Portugal. "The RB16B generates a lot of energy that goes to the tyres, and in the conditions of this race that was not an advantage but a problem. The Mercedes W12 actually benefited because the car uses less energy in the tyres," he continued.

In Barcelona, therefore, he expects very different conditions, particularly as there is much more grip. "Because the differences are so small now, the sensitivities of the cars are put under extra scrutiny for each circuit, especially in terms of dynamic and aerodynamic aspects, as well as the sensitivity of the tyres. The results can therefore depend very much on the behaviour of the tyres," Filisetti said.