Mercedes Technical Director James Allison has praised Red Bull’s innovative designs on its 2024 Formula 1 car but denies comparisons to the team’s past designs.
Red Bull has thrashed the opposition since the sport’s return to ground effect cars in 2022, optimising the downwash sidepod solution to devastating effect.
Having won all but one race last term, Red Bull boss Christian Horner issued that the team was prioritising a process of evolution as it bids to retain its advantage.
However, the Austrian outfit stunned when it unveiled an RB20 car sporting several radical revisions which Horner has labelled as “not a conservative evolution”.
The most striking design element Red Bull has produced is adopting a vertical inlet on the sidepods reminiscent of the ‘zeropod’ concept Mercedes abandoned.
Allison has commended Red Bull’s decision to go aggressive with its latest car, citing that it would have been reasonable for the reigning champions to be cautious.
“Well mostly I thought that when a team is out in front like they have been, it’s quite easy to rest on your laurels and I thought bravo to them for being willing to do something that is not just a straightforward iteration of the previous season, that’s what I mostly thought,” Allison said when he was asked for his initial thoughts on Red Bull’s car.
Aside from the sidepod structure, Red Bull’s current machine has drawn comparisons to the Mercedes car from last season with a deep gulley on the engine cover.
But asked whether the team gained vindication from Red Bull opting for solutions which had been conceived by Mercedes, Allison retorted: “No I don’t think so.
“I think you could go up and down this pit lane and take the engine cover shape off every car on the grid and plonk it on any other car on the grid and it wouldn’t make a hill of beans difference.
“What will be interesting is what will be underneath that engine cover, what are they using that volume for. But that external shape is neither here nor there.”
Allison confirmed that Mercedes had been successful in its pursuit of eradicating the unpredictable rear end traits that characterised its troubled W14 predecessor.
However, like both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, Allison admits that Mercedes is in “chasing mode” against a Red Bull squad which remains the benchmark.
But despite attention turning towards the 2026 regulations next year, the British engineer has denied that Red Bull’s ominous form represents a lost cause for the rest.
“It’s a 24-race season and we’ll be pushing ahead with this trying to make sure that we remain competitive in this season,” Allison said.
“Still more the following year and the year after that, so no, don’t be so pessimistic.
