Have you seen how amazingly Max Verstappen clinched his second Formula One World title in 2022? He just broke the record for winning the most Grand Prix races in a season. Won the championship title with four races remaining. Made Red Bull win the constructor’s championship with three races remaining. Max Verstappen just proved that he is worth winning a title, slapping the controversy that alleged him to steal the trophy of Lewis Hamilton in 2021.
Now, the Ductham is gearing up for his third championship in the 2023 Formula One season. But will he be able to win the title again? There are several challenges waiting for the Red Bull star on the grid, blocking the way to his third trophy.
In 2022, Red Bull transformed into the most dominant team of Formula One. Luckily the ground floor effects regulations that made Mercedes fall down from the roof to the ground proved to be good luck for the Austrian racing team. Red Bull not only claimed the 2022 F1 campaign but left a massive gap for its rivals. Speaking of Ferrari, they are 13 races away from matching the level of Red Bull. And Mercedes are 16 races behind Max Verstappen’s team.
However, despite this extraordinary performance of Red Bull, there have been the DNFs in two of the 2022 races that paved the way for George Russell’s maiden win in Brazil. Who knows, the two DNF gets promoted in 2023 more than two times. Besides, the rivals who are suffering from the deep wounds of such a drastic defeat will definitely find a way to find relief with a strong comeback. And then, there will be a three-way battle between Red Bull, Mercedes, and Ferrari.
What If Red Bull Gets Overtaken By Ferrari In Performance?
Red Bull won the constructor’s championship in 2022. As a result, they got the least aerodynamics testing allowance. 5% less than Ferrari due to the constructor’s gap, plus the 10% gap that the team received due to the cost cap penalty. So a 15% less Wind Tunnel allowance is a big disadvantage with Red Bull. Initially, in the 2022 season, Ferrari claimed consecutive wins.
However, after Silverstone, there was a need for an upgrade in the F1- 75, but due to the low budget, the Scuderia team could not afford it, as believed by the team’s then-principal, Mattia Binotto. This year, Ferrari is well aware of the cost budget and the needed upgrades. The team is already bringing a bomb-like engine in F1-675. Therefore, it will be no shock if Charles Leclerc wins his first championship, finally in 2023.
After breaking the streak of seven constructors championships, Mercedes is preparing very hard this time. Within the winter break, the team overcame the only issue that made them lose the season so badly, which is namely the ‘Purpoising’ issue. According to the technical director of Mercedes, Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes had cracked the code that could lead them to win the championship.