The constructors’ world champion team is talking about the redesigned look of its W13, unveiled at Sakhir on Thursday.
New technological feat or dangerous game with the rules? The Mercedes of seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton started the second pre-season test on Thursday in Bahrain with new features that sparked a controversy immediately stifled by rivals Red Bull. In question, the virtual absence of pontoons on the sides of the German single-seater, whose boss of Red Bull, Christian Horner, would question compliance with the regulations, according to the Germans of Auto Motor and Sport a specialized media that is generally very well informed.
«Christian Horner did not give an interview about the Mercedes car. All quotes attributed to him this morning are incorrect“Quickly countered a spokesperson for the bull stable. Response from Auto Motor und Sport via its journalist Andreas Haupt on Twitter:We spoke with Horner in the paddock today. You can trust us».
Knowing the climate of mistrust that has reigned between the two teams for years and which reached new heights during the controversial coronation of Dutchman Max Verstappen last year, one would be tempted to believe it.
“The important thing is to be fast”
These pontoons reduced to the minimum since the first tests in Barcelona at the end of February, dominated by Mercedes in front of Red Bull, also caught the eye of the sporting director of Formula 1, Ross Brawn. This concept, the championship promoter had not anticipated it, he told the official F1 channel. “We will study these solutions to make sure they meet the objectives of the new rules (but) I think they doadded the engineer.
It also remains to be seen if the idea pays off. “No matter how it looks, the important thing is to be fast“recalls the other Mercedes driver, George Russell. But after a day atexperimentIn the words of boss Toto Wolff, in the hands of Hamilton in the morning and Russell in the afternoon, this new Mercedes seemed slippery. In the heat and a light wind, the best times went to Frenchman Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri), whose single-seater nevertheless continues to bounce back a lot, like many of its competitors from Barcelona, and to the Ferraris, who have shown promise since these first tests.
Read alsoF1: Gasly and Ferrari ahead on the first day of Bahrain testing
Support for Ukraine
Another visible – but less debated – change to the 2022 single-seaters, Haas changed its livery, returning to red, black and white, without the blue of the Russian flag, after breaking with its sponsor Uralkali in reaction to the invasion. from Ukraine. Also a consequence of this invasion, the American team has replaced its Russian driver Nikita Mazepin with one of its former drivers, the Dane Kevin Magnussen, who will be driving on Friday and Saturday, alternating with Mick Schumacher.
In the meantime, it was the Brazilian Pietro Fittipaldi who took over on Thursday afternoon. Impossible, indeed, for Haas to drive from the morning after a delay in the routing of its freight. Still reacting to the situation in Ukraine, World Championship promoter Formula One terminated its contract with its broadcaster in Russia and blocked access to its official online channel in the country, confirmed the AFP from a close source on Thursday.
Read alsoF1: “An injustice”, Mazepin recounts his isolation since his ousting
The German Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) took to the track with a white helmet striped with blue and yellow (the colors of Ukraine) and struck several symbols of peace, including a dove and the lyrics of the song “Imagineby John Lennon. At the initiative of the association of Grand Prix drivers, the GPDA, eighteen of the holders in F1 (with the exception of Hamilton and Magnussen) also posed behind a Ukrainian flag and a banner bearing the words “No war” Wednesday. Hamilton spoke on Instagram. “My heart goes out to the courageous people of Ukraine who firmly defend their values of freedom and peace.“, he wrote in particular.
