On the eve of his departure from a team securing the top qualifying spots at Silverstone, Lewis Hamilton is unwavering about his decision to join Ferrari.
Lando Norris, of McLaren, is emerging as the only significant threat to Max Verstappen for the 2024 championship. However, he finds himself behind two silver Mercedes at the British GP - including Hamilton in P2.
"I never thought I'd say this," remarked Christian Horner, Red Bull's team principal, "but I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Hamilton. Mercedes are hurting us less in the world championship than McLaren."
Max Verstappen, the championship frontrunner, suffered damage to his upgraded car floor during the slippery qualifying round, positioning him just fourth on the grid, right behind Norris.
Fortunately for Red Bull, the fact that Sergio Perez is using the previous-spec car floor version all weekend will provide Verstappen with a replacement for the race on Sunday.
"Either way, we will have a functioning floor for Max," mentioned Dr Helmut Marko, a consultant for Red Bull.
Dr Marko acknowledges that even without the mishap, the improving Mercedes would likely have surpassed them, adding, "They have bigger wings than us and more downforce."
Mercedes appears to be mastering the complex 'ground effect' regulations, which have posed challenges for more than two years.
In a contrasting move, Ferrari has reverted to the car specifications from Imola, recognizing that their latest upgrades were too challenging for Silverstone's demands.
"For this track, we decided to take a step back," Charles Leclerc confirmed, P11 on the grid. "We'll see later on which direction to take."
"The main problem apart from the bouncing is that we are simply slow. Really slow."
As Mercedes surges ahead, Carlos Sainz, Leclerc's teammate who is exploring job opportunities, noted, "It is interesting to see how far Mercedes is ahead of us."
Sainz continued: "The others are developing well and we had to go back to the package from Imola. When you take a step back like that during development, you always suffer. The Imola package is not faster, but it's better to drive," Sainz further explained.
Despite Ferrari's conundrums, Hamilton, P2 on the grid just behind his high-performing teammate George Russell, remains committed to his future with Ferrari, asserting his decision was final regardless of Mercedes' late improvement last year.
"Yes," was all that the seven-time world champion would say on Saturday when asked about that.
