Feb.12 (GMM) Mercedes’ controversial engine compression concept remains the dominant talking point as official pre-season group testing began in Bahrain on Wednesday.
While Red Bull appeared strong from the outset – with Max Verstappen impressing on long runs – George Russell could manage only sixth fastest at the end of day one.
Russell admitted afterwards the W17 “doesn’t feel as good as it did in Barcelona,” while team boss Toto Wolff conceded the picture is not entirely comfortable.
“It isn’t smooth sailing,” Wolff said.
“We’ve seen a very, very strong Verstappen, so we have to get our act together, all of us, and then maybe by the end of the test we will understand more whether what we’ve done is good or good enough.”
The Austrian even admitted he had expected Red Bull to be “worse” at this stage with its in-house power unit.
“The car, the power unit, are the benchmark at the moment, I would say. Then, obviously, you have Max in the car,” Wolff said.
“They are able to deploy much more energy on the straights than everyone else. I mean, I’m talking about a second per lap, on consecutive laps.
“We’ve seen it in a single lap before, but now we’ve seen it in 10 consecutive laps with the same type of straight-line deployment.”
That perceived electrical deployment advantage comes as Mercedes faces growing pressure over its own power unit concept, amid rumours the FIA could force the team to unwind its controversial compression solution just weeks before the season opener.
“Until last Friday, I had the impression that nothing would change,” Wolff revealed. “Then I was forwarded an article from an Italian website stating that the rules would be modified.”
He struck a resigned tone about the possibility of intervention.
“Well, if it becomes a regulation, then you have to follow the regulation,” Wolff said. “And if you can’t follow the regulation, then the FIA has to come up with some kind of solution for how to adapt it. How that’s supposed to work is unclear to us.”
Wolff continues to insist the gain is marginal.
“It’s a couple of horsepower,” he said.
Should the FIA and Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali side with dissenting manufacturers, a supermajority could theoretically force a late rule clarification.
“We trust in governance. There is no scenario in which we would sue anyone,” Wolff insisted. “In my opinion, Formula 1 is more essential than ever, and it’s crucial that you know what the rules are.”
He hinted that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem may be sympathetic to Mercedes’ interpretation.
“We have always had the support of Mohammed Ben Sulayem,” Wolff said. “Interestingly, he is someone who cares a lot about his engines and his cars, and therefore, from his perspective, it was clear what the regulations said and that they were being applied correctly.
“But I believe that, fundamentally, the FIA president and Stefano will analyse it comprehensively and avoid excessive manoeuvring.”
Wolff also warned against the optics of a coalition forming against one supplier.
“When there’s a supermajority – the four engine manufacturers, plus Stefano, plus Mohammed – then you could say it’s no longer about uniting against a single supplier,” he said. “Stefano will always see it from the outside, from the perspective of manipulation.”
Mercedes customer and long-time Wolff ally James Vowles warned FIA against attacking “meritocracy,” arguing that the “best engineering should achieve the best result”.
The Williams boss added: “It has already become a political issue. What really worries me most is that we are punishing the best solutions.”
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