Ferrari are under huge pressure to resolve their reliability issues and keep the title races alive at the US GP after "imploding" during the Asian flyaways, according to this week's F1 Report guests.
Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes have their first opportunities to wrap up the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships at the Circuit of the Americas following Ferrari's woes in Singapore, Malaysia and Japan.
Sebastian Vettel's retirement at Suzuka, on the back of an engine problem in Malaysia and his dramatic opening lap crash from pole in Singapore, has seen Hamilton surge 59 points clear.
The Briton will be champion if he outscores the German by 16 points and Valtteri Bottas by three points in Austin while Mercedes only need to score 17 points more than Ferrari to wrap up a fourth consecutive Constructors' Championship.
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Vettel's spark plug issue in Japan was the fourth engine problem to strike Ferrari in the last two race weekends and Reuters' F1 correspondent Alan Baldwin isn't confident the Scuderia will have solved their problems.
"Ferrari are under a huge amount of pressure," Baldwin said on the F1 Report.
"They have slipped away on both fronts and I think there is no question Mercedes will win the Constructors' Championship this weekend.
"I think the drivers' title will go down to Mexico but I'm getting prepared for Lewis to win it this weekend because the way the last three races have gone, it could easily be that Ferrari have another problem.
'Ferrari running out of steam'
"Ferrari are under pressure because they've had three races where it hasn't gone to plan. They were so close up until Singapore and suddenly they have just imploded.
"They have got to show that they have got a grip on things…and I'm not sure they have."
Vettel's latest failure prompted Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne to concede they had overlooked quality control this season but they have made a late attempt to take action, adding Maria Mendoza - an expert in metals and chemicals - to their quality control department.
The Times' motor racing correspondent Rebecca Clancy joined Baldwin and Natalie Pinkham on the show and she expects Ferrari and Vettel to keep the drivers' title battle going for at least another week.
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"I can't see Ferrari having another bad weekend. If they can get the car around, I just can't see Vettel finishing sixth or lower. They should be competitive again," she said.
"At the last race in Japan it was a £52 spark plug [that caused the problem], they just won't allow that to happen again. They've brought in a new designer who is helping behind the scenes to get them back on track after three poor races.
"I fully expect Lewis to win this weekend, he's won the last three US GPs and Mercedes are absolutely brilliant around the Circuit of the Americas, but I can't see the title being won this weekend."
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