The Mercedes F1 team, one of the most dominant F1 teams in this hybrid era of the sport, seems on the verge of falling apart with each passing day.
ADVERTISING
The article continues below this ad
Of course, it all started with the sport’s small changes to the car’s aerodynamics that affected the team’s performance on the track. Then came the F1 decision to ban DAS, an incredible invention by the German team that definitely played a crucial role in the team’s success in the 2020 season.
And now, to add to their already mountainous ailments, Red Bull broke through the long-cherished Mercedes shield among their crews. The Austrian team managed to hire Mercedes’s mechanical engineer Ben Hodgkinson as head of the newly developed powertrain department.
ADVERTISING
The article continues below this ad
Formula 1 F1 – Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – Autodromo Enzo and Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy – Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton crosses the finish line in the second REUTERS / Jennifer Lorenzini
This has definitely left the Stuttgart team with massive misgivings when you consider that no Mercedes crew has fled to other rivals in almost a decade. Well the promise has finally been broken. And who could do better than their title threat, Red Bull!
Corriere Dello Sport claims the news took the entire Mercedes F1 team by surprise, as the situation at headquarters is more of a panic at the moment.
Additionally, Hodgkinson has reportedly tried to convince more engineers to follow in his footsteps and make their way to Red Bull.
Will Red Bull be the next Mercedes?
It’s no surprise that F1 and FIA worked hard together to bring the teams up to a level. Hence, most of the regulation changes in the past few years have impacted Mercedes and it looks like conditions will get worse in 2022.
Meanwhile, with every little change F1 makes, Red Bull is gaining massive traction. And here they are with a much faster car in 2021 and the favorites for the title out of nowhere.
The positives don’t stop there, as F1’s decision to freeze engine development between 2022 and 2024 gave Red Bull a golden ticket to maintain the current upward trend in performance.
Formula 1 F1 – Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – Autodromo Enzo and Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy – Red Bulls Max Verstappen in action during the REUTERS / Guglielmo Mangiapane race
With a Honda-made engine in hand and an engineer who has every single secret of the powertrains that Mercedes has triggered since entering F1, the Milton Keynes outfit is doing pretty well.
ADVERTISING
The article continues below this ad
This is definitely a bad sign for Mercedes. More problematic, however, is the likelihood that more such engineers will break out in the coming weeks. Hodgkinson has opened the floodgates, and Mercedes will be careful not to let more such crew members move to Red Bull or maybe even Ferrari.
How will Mercedes deal with this difficult situation? Will this change the tide of happiness towards Red Bull in the crucial 2022 season ahead? Only time can tell.
ADVERTISING
The article continues below this ad
SUBMERGED DEPTH
