Button makes prediction: 'They've done a great job'

At the beginning of the season, Mercedes did everything they could to compete for the world title again, but are performing disappointingly so far this race year. This development is a big surprise for Jenson Button, as he explains in conversation with Gentleman's Journal.

Whereas Lewis Hamilton has invariably been competing for winning the world championship in recent seasons, at the Imola Grand Prix he even had to settle for a thirteenth finishing position. The British driver was disappointed with his car afterwards and even saw team boss Toto Wolff openly apologize to him. The performance of Mercedes surprised Button.

"I’m massively surprised," stated the former Formula 1 driver, who does have a high opinion of Ferrari. "They’ve done a great job. And I don’t think I see it changing anytime soon… Ferrari still has more time in the wind tunnel than Mercedes, as does Red Bull. So it’s going to be tricky for Mercedes to come back."

Charles Leclerc is at the top of the world championship for now, but with a gap of 27 points, Max Verstappen is slowly creeping closer. In just over a week, the next Grand Prix is on the program. Then the Formula 1 teams travel to Miami.