Mercedes’s impressive performance on the straights in the final laps caught the attention of main competitor Red Bull.
After qualifying, Verstappen was seen inspecting the rear wing of Hamilton’s W12 – which resulted in a € 50,000 fine – and the Dutchman said after qualifying “there is clearly something going on”.
Despite Red Bull’s suspicions, Horner says his team has no intention of protesting as they continue to analyze and understand the reasons for Mercedes’ speed advantage on the straight.
“We’re not going to protest at this race,” Horner told Sky Sports. “It’s important to understand where the speed is coming from. Obviously they have a new engine here, they have Monaco-level downforce.
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“When he overtook Max, he was almost 30 kilometers faster on this lap, so we just have to understand that. It is up to the FIA to oversee and rule the sport. We trust in them and their tests and their investigation. “
Hamilton won from 10th on the grid in Sao Paulo and overtook Verstappen in a spectacular way.
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Given Mercedes’ advantage, Horner admitted that his driver had no chance of maintaining the lead.
“It’s always hard to take a loss after you’ve done so many laps, but that was against all expectations,” added Horner.
“I thought Max did a damn good job of leaving Lewis behind for as long as he could. We saw yesterday that the pace of this car was simply unstoppable today. For us, damage limitation. “
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is not worried about a possible protest from Red Bull and tells Sky Sports after the race:
“I don’t care,” he said.
“The car is completely legal and we like to drive it everywhere. You can say it was completely legal after qualifying. We think it was like that, but it didn’t pass this one test because the rear wing was broken, the hatch was broken. “
Explaining the dominant form of Mercedes at Interlagos, he added, “I think we have a much less dragging car, the engine is fresh which makes a big difference, the concept is good at the straight driving we have had in the past . “. People are free to question and protest what can happen.
“We’ll offer you a rear wing to put at home, in the library, or cut into a thousand pieces.”
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