Hamilton's US record a cause for Mercedes optimism

Mercedes director of trackside engineering Andrew Shovlin believes there is "no reason we shouldn't be strong" in America citing Lewis Hamilton's stunning record as evidence.

Hamilton is the most successful driver in the history of the United States Grand Prix, taking victory six times, five of which have come at the Circuit of the Americas.

Between 2012, when the circuit debuted on the calendar, and 2017, Hamilton was bested only once although has failed to top the podium on the last two visits with Kimi Raikkonen and Valtteri Bottas sharing those honours.

“It’s a very different Tarmac there but it’s a circuit that Lewis has been very strong at, it’s a track where there is good overtaking opportunity, there is degradation," said Shovlin.

"So that changes the dynamic of the race a little bit but there’s no reason to think that we shouldn’t be strong in Austin.

“But we did good preparation coming here and the car has been in the right window and that is the thing we need to make sure we do correctly for the next race.”

Mercedes was dominant last time out in Turkey with Bottas taking the win with a 14.5-second margin to Max Verstappen.

Far from basking in the success, Mercedes is focused on avoiding any potential stumbling blocks in the final six races of the year.

“We’ve got to go to all of these races looking at what could catch us out, not what is going to be great and easy for us," added Shovlin.

"We don’t really take that approach, it’s just a case of looking at all the data that’s coming of the simulations and working what we need to do with the car."

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