In the 2022 Formula One season, Red Bull succeeded in clinching both championships. The team won the constructor’s championship after eight years, so it became a more special win. Red Bull won 17 of the 22 races. Max Verstappen alone won 15 races making history in Formula One, which broke the record of Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel. The year overall was the best for team Red Bull. Let’s say 2022 was kind. But will the same happen in 2023 too? Will Red Bull win next year’s championship too as smoothly as in 2022? No! This time the team fears the strong comeback of Mercedes.
Rather than Ferrari, whose driver, Charles Leclerc, replaced Sergio Perez from the runner-up position in the driver’s championship, which ruined the team’s dream of having a one-two win. Red Bull is afraid of what Mercedes can bring next as it still has the top driver, Lewis Hamilton, in it. The beginning five races were distributed as four for Ferrari and only one for Red bull.
Initially in the season, Red Bull was constantly beaten by Ferrari four times. The Scuderia’s ace Charles Leclerc was a tough challenge to Max Verstappen and teammate Sergio Perez. Soon Red Bull brought an upgrade by removing the weight of RB18 and started dominating on the tracks in a way that 10 of the last 11 races were claimed by the team.
Ferrari Lacks In Strategic Mind, And Mercedes Is A Master Of It
However, Mercedes was never in title contention last season. It was only Ferrari and Red Bull who won, as everyone knows. But Ferrari suffered the consequences of the low-cost cap budget. Mattia Binotto admitted that F1-75 needed upgrades, but the team has already reached the budget of $140 million. If only Ferrari could have launched the upgrade it needed, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz would have rocked instead of Max Verstappen.
Imagination has always been good for the Scuderia team, which has not yet won a single championship since 2008. For next year the team has launched a new project, F1-675, with hopes of claiming the championship. But according to Red Bull’s head advisor Helmut Marko, Ferrari is not going to be a challenge next year.
More than Ferrari, Marko is afraid of Mercedes as the team has the record of the eighth consecutive championship and is also the seven-time world champion driver. This year, it was just the new regulations that made Mercedes suffer. Next year, there is nothing that can stop the team.
Ferrari lost this year because they lacked proper strategy as they spent too much of the budget in the beginning only. And this lack of strategic ability of the Scuderia makes Red Bull relief. Helmut Marko said, “Red Bull should fear Mercedes more than the prancing horses. This is because they have an advantage over Ferrari in terms of strategy and reliability.”