1996 Formula 1 World Champion Damon Hill has predicted that Ferrari will pose a stronger threat to Red Bull in Saudi Arabia than it did in Bahrain.
Red Bull enjoyed a strong season-opening race to the 2023 campaign earlier this month, with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez capturing a 1-2 finish for the energy drink-backed outfit.
Ferrari, meanwhile, had a more difficult outing with Charles Leclerc retiring from third place with an engine issue.
The team’s podium hopes rested with Carlos Sainz, but tyre degradation saw his pace drop away and he was subsequently overtaken by Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso for third.
But speaking to the F1 Nation podcast, Hill has predicted that things will be more challenging for Red Bull this weekend: “It’s going to be different [to Bahrain],” he said.
“We’re going to realise Ferrari have got pace, they have got the ability to race and they’ll be all over the back of the Red Bulls with the DRS zones and everything. It’s going to be great.
“A lot of people if not all of the people we spoke to after Bahrain – [Aston Martin team principal] Mike Krack [Aston Martin team boss] included, Adrian Newey [Red Bull’s chief designer] called it a sample of one – [agreed that] Bahrain is not a typical circuit.
“It’s extraordinarily abrasive and the combination of corners is very tight and twisty, I can’t think of another circuit it compares to really [for] high rear-tyre deg.
“We’re going now to a circuit which has got very different characteristics and demands on the car, so the order will not necessarily be exactly as it was in Bahrain.”
Aston Martin was one of the biggest talking points from Bahrain, with its pace delivering a podium result.
The team has been cautious over how it will fare across the remainder of the season – but Hill says that Jeddah could offer a major clue.
“I think what’s going to be really important as an indicator for how the season will pan out is going from Bahrain to Saudi, which is a different type of circuit,” he said.
“It is going to give a pointer as to whether there’s any chink in the armour for Red Bull, whether it actually is track specific; the performance of maybe Ferrari will be much more competitive and a circuit with less tyre deg, certainly in race conditions, and also their horsepower as well.
“Aston Martin have now kind of created an expectation that they’re going to be brilliant at every event, so they are going to find out that you’ve got to keep it up if you’re going to do well.”
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