2020, the year of the Mercedes Red Bull duel
The first week of winter testing in Barcelona was eventful. With innovations, controversies, new drivers, and a shift in the hierarchy at the top of the table, this first week foreshadows a battle between Red Bull and Mercedes for the championship.
Of the Top 3 teams, Mercedes was the team that completed the most laps during the week. With 494 laps on the clock, the Silver Arrows covered more than 650 km more than their historical rival, Ferrari, which has lagged significantly in all areas this pre-season.
Beyond the track time, it is especially in the timing sheet that the gap is most significant. With a best time of 1:18.154, Ferrari finds itself about two and a half seconds behind Mercedes and six-tenths behind Red Bull.
In terms of reliability, alongside Mercedes, Red Bull was one of the best teams throughout the 2019 season in terms of power unit reliability. The Honda engine has made further performance improvements this year. This was stated by Max Verstappen upon exiting the car after the tests. Red Bull’s progress contrasts with the problems encountered by Ferrari on Sebastian Vettel’s car during the third day of testing. A lack of reliability led to a red flag and an engine change for Ferrari.
Questioned by our colleagues at Skysports, Toto Wolff stated that Red Bull will be Mercedes’ main competitor in 2020. Red Bull will be driven by Honda’s performance but especially by Max Verstappen’s ambition to become the youngest world champion in history.
Same story at the Maranello team, where doubt is already starting to set in. Mattia Binotto, the director of the Italian team, expressed concerns following the results of these tests.
Will we see a Verstappen-Hamilton duel? In any case, the Dutch driver already has his eyes set on the Australian GP, explaining that the goal is to be competitive from the first race of the season. The appointment is set for less than a month from now in the streets of Melbourne.
