Red Bull superiority or internal crisis?
Three consecutive victories for Red Bull and three podium finishes in a row for Aston Martin in the first three rounds of the 2023 Formula One world championship. For the two teams it is certainly a high-level start to the season and full of positive aspects, but what about everyone else? Is it a question of a significantly lower potential of the single-seaters compared to those of their opponents, or is it due to an internal crisis in each of the chasing teams? For Alain Prost, four times Formula 1 world champion and former Scuderia Ferrari driver, the explanation is more related to the second theory.
The most affected teams
The Frenchman, interviewed by his compatriots from L’Equipe, highlighted the main difficulties of various teams in this start to the championship, which are decisive in blocking any attempt to come back: “It’s a strange start to the season – explained the Professor – everywhere if you look at it, you can see that things aren’t going well and that, in a certain sense, is already a crisis at all levels, both for the top teams and for the smaller ones. There are, of course, the historic teams that are suffering, such as McLaren, which is not only not rebuilding itself but, year after year, is going downhill. There is Alpine, whose recovery is still slow. There is Mercedes, which persists with its innovative concept, but which obviously does not work. Ferrari, deciding instead to bring in a new vision and new personnel, especially from outside Italy, today does not have the results we would have liked to see” – the former Maranello driver pointed out.
Beware of Red Bull
Curiously, although it is the absolute force of this first phase of the championship, Alain Prost did not exempt Red Bull from the teams at risk, explaining in detail the reasons why the Milton Keynes side could face a crisis during the next rounds: “Their system of favoring just one driver, Max Verstappen, which has worked so well, is showing the first signs of breaking down – added the 68-year-old – Sergio Perez, now established in the team, is discovering that he can win and is no longer willing to compromise his ambitions just to stay in the team. Even if Red Bull’s dominance continues, the next few weeks will be crucial for the reigning world champions. It is clear that anything can quickly throw a spanner in the works and that, even at the top, a crisis is never far away.” – the Frenchman added.
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The single case
The only exception, for the former Ferrari driver, is represented by Aston Martin, a team seen as an example of how things should be done: “Last year it decided to put a stone on its 2022 car and agreed to reinvent itself – he concluded – first they decided to change one of their drivers, without thinking twice, going from Sebastian Vettel to Fernando Alonso. They took the time needed to figure out and understand the best options to go forward and now they are at the top, away from the slump others are going through. A lesson for all the other teams.” – Alain Prost concluded.
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