Mercedes say they are heading into the British Grand Prix as no more than third favourites for the win – but engineer Andrew Shovlin has refused to rule out that a first victory of the season could come this weekend. The team are yet to taste victory in 2022, with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell sharing only five podiums between them. The British Grand Prix will bring a big upgrade for the W13, as confirmed by Toto Wolff on Wednesday, with Hamilton having set his home race as the target date for when his team must be winning races. But can the Silver Arrows meet Hamilton's request and provide their British drivers with a car capable of making history on home soil this weekend? "It obviously depends on how the car performs," explained Shovlin, speaking to Sky Sports F1 . "If we take the best situation on race pace, like in Barcelona, we weren't too far off the leaders. "We do need to make a step forward to be back in that position, but we would never rule out a win at a Grand Prix. "We're not favourites. I'd say we're third favourites at best this weekend," he admitted.
Shovlin: We're not making radical changes to W13
There has been plenty of talk that Mercedes could soon turn their back on their current car, opting to deliver a b-spec machine and shifting their focus to the 2023 season. However, the team will not be making wholesale changes to their car – even with big upgrades expected throughout the European season. Shovlin continued: "Over most of the last decade, we've defined the standard that is required to win a championship. Most of this car is at that standard; it has been designed by the same people in the same way. "Clearly there are some areas we have got to improve: in and around the aerodynamic package is one of them. We're also looking at the vehicle dynamics and we're trying to improve the ride. "But we're not going to come out with some radically different-looking car. However, none of the car is sacred and we're always looking at where we can find performance."
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