Red Bull\’s Team Principal, Christian Horner, has no feelings about Mercedes\’ struggle in 2022. Mercedes haven\’t been able to perform well in comparison with Red Bull and Ferrari, who clearly are ahead in the championship battle. Last season, Mercedes and Red bull were in aggressive competition for the 2021 title.
While Red Bull\’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes\’ Lewis Hamilton were having a fierce battle on the track, there were reports of tensions between Horner and Mercedes CEO Toto Wolff. There were a number of incidents on the track in Italy, Britain, Saudi Arabia, and Abu Dhabi between Lewis and Max, which justified the internal battles between the two racing teams. However, Horner feels that the tables have turned for Mercedes and Red Bull has a new rival in Ferrari to look forward to.
Red Bull Boss Focused On A New Opponent:
Christian Horner said about Mercedes\’ campaign this season, \”They are struggling. I have no feelings about their competitiveness.\” The Red Bull manager is now focused on their team\’s competitiveness in the intense battle with Ferrari. Horton had no doubts that Mercedes will return to the battle at some point in the season. However, Red Bull is insistent about focusing on themselves and their current rival Ferrari.
Red Bull\’s Verstappen managed to get ahead of Ferrari\’s Charles Leclerc in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to get his first win of the season. However, Max is still chasing Ferrari\’s lead after the double retirement in Bahrain. Leclerc is at the first spot of the F1 2022 rankings with 45 points and one victory. He is followed by his teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. at 33 points. Meanwhile, Verstappen is still trailing by 20 points and positioned at the third spot after a win at Jeddah. Mercedes\’ George Russell and Lewis Hamilton are in the fourth and fifth spots with 22 and 16 points. Unfortunately, Mercedes have not been able to win a single race this season. Mercedes\’s trackside engineering director has given a fair insight into his team\’s campaign in 2022.
Andrew Shovlin Says His team Pushed Too Far:
The Trackside Director of Mercedes, Andrew Shovlin, revealed that the team pushed Lewis Hamilton\’s car too far. The former world champion was eliminated in Q1 at the Jeddah circuit on the first occasion since 2017. After a late withdrawal from Mick Schumacher, Lewis had to start the race at the 15th position. However, Hamilton tried to make up for the damage and quickly rose to the sixth position. Sadly, Lewis\’ safety car\’s malfunction led to an unplanned pit stop. He returned to the track in 12th position. Fortunately, Hamilton somehow managed to finish in the top-10 position after two late overtakes. The seven-time world champ will go into next week\’s Australian Grand Prix trailing the top-ranked Leclerc by 29 points.
Shovlin believes both the drivers from Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, got some useful practice over the weekend. Meanwhile, the drivers in Jeddah were under stressed conditions after the missile strike on Friday. Luckily for Mercedes, George Russel finished in the fifth spot on Sunday. Shovlin also added that the team is trying to explore the setup with Lewis and find the right direction toward good performances. Andrew said, \”we\’d found a good direction from Friday into Saturday that he was able to try in the third practice session.\” Hopefully, Mercedes will be more competitive during the Australian GP scheduled on April 10th.