Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko believes that Mercedes have “lost their way” and has questioned the team’s ability to recover pace during the 2023 season.
Mercedes entered the current campaign looking to improve its form compared to last year, when it took just a single grand prix win.
However, it appeared to be the fourth fastest team at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, with Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin possessing stronger pace than it.
The future of its unique “zero sidepod” design has been in question for some time, with Mercedes carrying over the concept to the 2023 campaign after introducing it last year.
At the race weekend, Mercedes CEO Toto Wolff admitted that the team wouldn’t be competitive with the concept, suggesting that it will go back to the drawing board.
“Mercedes has more than one obstacle, that’s clear,” Marko told OE24.
“They have not made any progress compared to last season. If you look at the gaps, it was even a step backwards.
“They seem to have lost their way somewhere. I am curious to see what they will do now. Because of the cost cap, it’s such a problem to develop the car routinely.
“How do you put together a completely new car? Unless they make the golden shot, which I wouldn’t assume after recent experiences.”
Mercedes dominated the turbo-hybrid era in its early years, before Red Bull mounted a championship challenge in 2021.
Red Bull dominated the 2022 campaign and look to have the strongest package at the start of the current year after taking a 1-2 finish with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez in Bahrain.
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