Max Verstappen is inarguably the driver to beat at the moment in Formula One, with the Dutchman pulling off dominant victories against the motorsport kingpins, Ferrari and Mercedes. The former, especially, had no answer to the defending champion’s searing pace at the Belgian Grand Prix last weekend.
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Hence, now, with this season shaping up to be nothing but a one-sided affair, most F1 fans have already shifted their focus to the 2023 campaign. So, the question is, who is then going to stop the unstoppable Verstappen? Well, we’ve got an answer, and it has arrived from the Mercedes camp.
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Mercedes F1 boss’ mantra that could peg back Verstappen
Toto Wolff made a rather interesting revelation and it may well have inflicted a bit of anxiety in the leading contenders, Red Bull Racing. The Austrian affirmed that Mercedes are seeking big changes that could lead to massive performance spikes for the 2023 F1 season. Meaning, the pace advantage Ferrari and Red Bull have been embracing since the start of this season may not last for long.
Formula One F1 – Austrian Grand Prix – Red Bull Ring, Spielberg, Austria – July 10, 2022 Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff ahead of the Grand Prix REUTERS/Florion Goga
“I think it’s more a question of things you don’t see on the car rather than what you see. It’s obvious we have a narrow sidepod concept and in some other things, the rear floor sticking out more than on the other cars, and certainly, that will play a role,” he said according to Express.
Watch Story: Max Verstappen: ‘Is my title tarnished? Not at all. I really deserved it’
“But much more important is how have we developed the car to run where low on the floor we can’t run it and what does it do to our suspension kinematic, and this is why at the moment it’s just a little bit of trial and error. It’s more changing things underneath the car. You can clearly see the Red Bull runs the car much higher… This is the right compromise they are getting.”
Another Lewis Hamilton-Max Verstappen waiting to spice F1 up?
The 2021 F1 season offered the fans a taste of what true rivalry is, as Hamilton and Verstappen battled each other for the championship to the line of the final lap of the final race. And while the extension of this rivalry seemed imminent in 2022, Mercedes, in a shocking turn of events, took a hefty performance blow, obstructing Hamilton from getting his redemption on the evolving Dutch lion.
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DIVE DEEPER
Formula One F1 – Italian Grand Prix – Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Monza, Italy – September 12, 2021 Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton crash out of the race REUTERS/Jennifer Lorenzini TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Well, it seems pretty certain that the Brackley outfit will be back in business next season and Hamilton may yet again find himself going up against the new version of Verstappen, a far more patient, composed, and calculative. Hence, this is undeniably the duel to watch out for in a few months’ time.
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But, the biggest question is, will the seven-time world champion be able to handle the heat of Verstappen next time around? Only time will tell. Until then, let’s keep our fingers crossed and hope for a miraculous turnaround from Charles Leclerc and Ferrari.
