Horner expects Mercedes F1 fight in Brazil

Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner believes Mercedes will be “competitive” at the Brazilian Grand Prix this weekend.

Red Bull has been enjoying a highly dominant campaign thus far, winning 18 out of the 19 races staged.

Mercedes is yet to emerge victorious in the current campaign with its last F1 victory coming in Sau Paulo 12 months ago when George Russell clinched his maiden win.

The Brackley-based squad has shown strong pace at recent events, including in the United States and Mexico, with Lewis Hamilton crossing the line in second on both occasions.

However, Hamilton was thrown out of the results in the USA when it was found that his rear skid plate had worn below the acceptable amount.

As Mercedes seeks to end its win drought, Horner has suggested that it could have an opportunity in Brazil.

“They've been competitive on race runs here [in Mexico] and Austin's difficult to judge because of obviously what happened,” Horner told media including RacingNews365.com

“But we expect them to be competitive in Brazil, for sure.

“Brazil for us is a scratch un-itched from last year, we felt we didn't quite get the setup right there.

“So we'll go and try and put that right this year.”