Mercedes victory not a certainty in Russia as Ferrari eye the podium

HERE we go again. Back to Russia for a race that has generally been a bit of a procession and ended with the predictable outcome of a Mercedes win. Yawwwnnnn.

Fear not! Because this year it could be different.

Mercedes boast a 100% record in Russia, but Ferrari have won two of the three races so far this season.

The Silver Arrows have a fight on their hands to keep their strong Sochi showing going.

With the Black Sea on one side and the Caucasus mountains on the other, the backdrop for the Russian Grand Prix is both stunning and unique.

The city of Sochi is a popular holiday resort, but has also developed into a sporting venue in recent years. The circuit itself weaves in and around the site of the Olympic Park for the 2014 Winter Olympics and the city will also be a host city for next year’s Fifa World Cup. How the title contenders have got on so far this season

It could be a good weekend for . . .

McLaren: Well, maybe not a good weekend, but a better one than they have had so far this season. They had a surprisingly good final day in testing in Bahrain after the last race, so good in fact it even took the team by surprise.

Stoffel Vandoorne completed 81 laps, finishing fourth fastest, and McLaren were at a loss to explain how he had done so well, given that the engine was the same specification as the one that struggled after two laps on the first day of testing.

The circuit, where straight-line speed is important, isn’t the best for the McLaren package, but getting through the weekend with minimal reliability issues would be an important step forward. It could be a bad weekend for: Marcus Ericsson. The Swede has struggled so far this season, retiring from two of the three races so far with his best finish 15th in China.

His Sauber teammate Pascal Wehrlein returned in Bahrain after missing the first two races as he built up his fitness following a back injury and promptly finished 11th.

The pressure will be on Ericsson to ensure he is closer to Wehrlein today. Hulkenberg’s Russia hoodoo — the stats Ferrari have won two races this season — their best start since 2008 when they won four of the first five races. Valtteri Bottas, while driving for Williams, became the first non-Mercedes driver to start on the front row in Sochi last year.

Nico Hulkenberg has crashed out on the first lap of the last two races in Russia. —

Marcus Ericsson has struggled so far this season, retiring from two of the three races