Formula 1 managing director of motorsports Ross Brawn says he fears Mercedes will continue to dominate the sport in 2018, as stable regulations mean they're likely to carry their current advantage over to next year.
Mercedes had won three consecutive Constructors' Championships prior to the '17 season and, despite a major regulation change at the start of the year, emerged as the dominant force once again to claim a fourth title, although rivals Ferrari and Red Bull closed the gap a little.
Brawn fears Mercedes will get on top of the problems it endured this year and will come out in an even better position in '18.
"They've got a great group of people, but my slight worry is that they will get even stronger now," he told EPSN. "They've had a change of senior management – Paddy Lowe left and James Allison came – and that was in the middle of a car [regulation] change, which is not easy.
"By their own admission, the car they had this year was a bit of a diva and I strongly suspect that's not going to be the case next year. So I just see – unfortunately in many ways – a continuation of the steamroller. Let's hope I'm wrong!"
Brawn does however believe '18 can produce some great racing based on what he saw this year, but warned the occasional boring race, like Abu Dhabi, will always happen no matter what Liberty Media change.
"We have to keep a balanced view. We had some great races this season. Abu Dhabi wasn't the greatest, but we had some great races this year. I'm optimistic we can have a very strong year next year."
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