As the 2023 Formula 1 season progresses, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff does not shy away from expressing his concerns about the past regulatory changes that seemingly put brakes on their championship run. Despite Red Bull‘s staggering performance with a 14 Grand Prix winning streak this year, and Max Verstappen clinching his 10th consecutive win recently, Mercedes has chosen not to “cry foul.”

The commendable show of sportsmanship, however, doesn’t curtail Wolff from pointing out what he perceives as the FIA’s tactics to curtail Mercedes‘ previous dominance in the championship. But, he takes a retrospective look at regulatory changes brought in by the FIA that he believes “targeted” Lewis Hamilton to reintroduce equilibrium in the pecking order, giving Max Verstappen and his team an edge in the championship battle.

He pinpointed the 2021 season as a clear instance where the regulatory shifts had a tangible impact. Despite their efforts to adapt and unlock the car’s potential, notably evidenced in Silverstone, Mercedes could not completely bridge the gap created by the regulatory reforms.

According to Race Fans, Wolff explained,

“I think we probably lost the 2021 drivers’ championship for many reasons, one was the final race. But we also lost it because those regulations were set in place in order to reduce the advantage that we had. 2020 was a super-dominant year for us. I think it was the best car we’ve ever had. And then towards the end of the season, they changed the regs by cutting the floor out. That was to stop us, and we could see the results in 2021, we were not as competitive as Red Bull was.”

Despite facing an uphill battle, Wolff’s stance is clear — the onus is on Mercedes to reclaim its former glory, steering clear of complaints and focusing on ingenuity and determination to bridge the existing gap. But that’s not the only hot take in the Mercedes-Red Bull rivalry. Here is something Christian Horner believes Toto Wolff “lacks to understand”.

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Christian Horner dismisses Toto Wolff’s Verstappen car development theory

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has dismissed comments made by Mercedes counterpart Toto Wolff on the development strategy behind Max Verstappen’s RB19. After Verstappen clinched his 10th consecutive Grand Prix win in Monza, Wolff speculated (as per Sky Sports) that the RB19 was specifically tailored to suit Verstappen’s driving style. Attributing the significant performance gap between Verstappen and teammate Sergio Perez to this.

In response, Horner firmly stated that Wolff displayed “a total lack of understanding” of race car development. He emphasized that cars are designed to be as fast as possible, not to cater to a particular driver’s style. “You develop a car to be as quick as you can and sometimes quick cars are difficult cars – that’s what’s historically been the case,” Horner explained to Sky Sports.

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Supporting Verstappen’s rejection of Wolff’s theory, Horner praised the championship leader’s adaptability and skill set, affirming that the objective remains to build the fastest car using the tools and simulations available, without favoring any one driver.

This clash between the team principals adds a fresh layer of intrigue to an F1 season already marked by Verstappen’s historic winning streak, as the Red Bull and Mercedes rivalry continues to heat up.

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