Lewis Hamilton makes SHOCK dark horse prediction for 2018 F1 season
The 2018 season gets underway this weekend with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne and all eyes will be on world champion Hamilton and Mercedes to see if their dominance can be disturbed.
But there are a few interesting battles further back in the grid, with Hamilton anticipating that Haas - in just their third season in F1 - can force their way up into the middle of the pack.
Haas have finished 8th in the Constructors’ Championship in the past two seasons having only entered the sport in 2016.
The North Carolina-based team fared well in pre-season testing earlier this month, going fifth fastest of the 10 teams. But they have not beaten their fifth-placed finish in Bahrain two years ago.
And while testing times are notoriously unreliable, Mercedes believe Haas’ numbers indicate that the Ferrari-powered outfit will be a greater threat this year through Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen.