Red Bull: 'We made a normal start, but were have Ferrari and Mercedes gone?'

Max Verstappen had stated that he was certain Red Bull would have a good start to the season in view of 2023, but that the dangers would be over the long term, given that the penalty imposed for the minor budget cap infringement in 2021 would slow down the RB19 in terms of development. Now, we don’t know what Max Verstappen’s concept of “starting well” is, but Red Bull has already collected five wins, four pole positions, and four one-two finishes in the first five races. The Constructors’ standings paint a picture of overwhelming domination: the Milton Keynes team already has 224 points and has already collected the double of Aston Martin’s total, which is second with 102.

The fact that Aston Martin is in second place in the Constructors’ standings opens up another perspective, indeed ‘the’ perspective of this beginning of 2023 dominated by Red Bull. Where are Ferrari and Mercedes? Both currently have only one podium (Lewis Hamilton in Australia and Charles Leclerc in Baku) and their absence from the top of the standings surprises even Red Bull team principal Christian Horner.

Horner and the “faults” of Ferrari and Mercedes
Red Bull has worked exceptionally well with the arrival of this regulation cycle, and the results are clear to see, but both Scuderia Ferrari and Mercedes have made more than one mistake between 2022 and 2023 in confirming projects that evidently are not at the level of a Red Bull car that inspired several other competitors. “Five races, five wins plus the Sprint and four one-twos: we’ve never had a start like this, and we’re wondering ‘where are the others?’ – the words of Christian Horner to Sky Sports UK – during the winter, we had a performance increase that I would call normal, we’re rather wondering where Ferrari and Mercedes have gone”.

Both of Red Bull’s opponents have important updates planned for Imola, even just to try to respond to an Aston Martin that, with Fernando Alonso, is embarrassing its more established rivals in races, with the Spaniard who was also untouchable for George Russell, Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton, and Charles Leclerc yesterday in Miami. “I’m sure they’re working on major upgrades for Europe, and with the penalty we have for developing the car further into the year, it’s important that there’s a gap as big as possible between us and the opponents at this stage,” added Christian Horner, who continues to emphasize the importance of gaining an advantage in the beginning of the 2023 Formula One season.

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Currently, however, what George Russell said in Bahrain is more believable, that Red Bull will win all 23 races on the schedule in 2023.