As enthusiasts patiently explain, motor racing is a team sport. We think it’s all about the best driver, true aficionados see beyond to unsung heroes in overalls glimpsed during pit stops and others who sit at drawing boards and laptop computers. The most committed Formula One fans are never outraged by team orders and regard the constructors’ championship as equally compelling. So why the fuss about Mercedes? If the rules state that a designer must be limited or regulated if he gets too good, what is the point in having a constructors’ championship at all? Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates his win at the season-opening race in Melbourne, Australia . Hamilton and Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg were in a class of their own as they dominated the race . Hamilton, the reigning world champion, is the overwhelming favourite to defend his Formula One crown . Give everyone the same car, forget teams and make F1 about drivers only. The problem is, who would then pay for all that expensive equipment to be ferried around the world? One can hardly imagine Lewis Hamilton trundling his wheels off a ferry at Cherbourg before making his way down to the Monte Carlo Grand Prix via the toll roads. Yes, we may be in for a boring F1 season but not for the reason many imagine: the dominance of Mercedes. This is shaping up as a dull one because the narrative is now set at one team being too good and Hamilton being the best only because he has the fastest car. Critics then seek to devalue his achievements. Yawn. Naturally, the man with the fastest machine often wins — but not always. In the past 30 years, there have been four occasions when the top driver wasn’t in the top car and Hamilton is the only one to achieve that feat this century. Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo finished sixth at the first race of the season, one lap down on Hamilton . Christian Horner oversaw Red Bulls dominance from 2010-2013 as they won four consecutive championships . Helmut Marko, motorsport advisor of Red Bull, has speculated that his team could pull out of Formula One . VIDEO Red Bull threaten exit over 'boring' rules . In 2008, Hamilton won the drivers’ championship in a McLaren but Ferrari took the constructors’ title. Before that, Mika Hakkinen (1999), Michael Schumacher (1994) and Alain Prost (1986) also pulled it off. So when Hamilton said if everyone had the same car he would still be champion, he is probably right. F1 isn’t like that, though. It’s a team game, and Mercedes deserve their glory, too. Helmut Marko, motorsport advisor of Red Bull, has speculated that his team could pull out if Mercedes are allowed to dominate and some are troubled by that threat — but what if Mercedes walked instead? What if, instead of losing the also-rans, the team with the best driver and the best car grew sick of the artificial manipulation, and withdrew? Red Bull dominated for four years and each season changes were made to try to rein them in, but after one race? That is a pathetic attitude. ‘Just get your head down, work hard and try to sort it out,’ was the advice from Mercedes chief Toto Wolff and he is right. If this season is about Hamilton versus his team-mate Nico Rosberg, tough. Last year, F1 risked a lottery by awarding random double points for the final Grand Prix. This is worse — a sport that seeks to put the brakes on excellence for the sake of mediocrity is not much of a sport at all.
Lewis Hamilton won in Australia ahead of team-mate Nico Robserg . Helmut Marko, motorsport advisor of Red Bull, has speculated that his team could pull out of Formula One if Mercedes are allowed to dominate . Mercedes chief Toto Wolff has urged Red Bull to 'get their head down'
And if this Formula One season is about Hamilton vs Rosberg, tough .