Excluding Yuki Tsunoda, who was unable to set a time due to a mechanical problem, the Mercedes-powered single-seaters took the last five places in Q1 at the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah.
Both the Aston Martins and Williams finished at the back, as did Mercedes works team driver Lewis Hamilton. For both McLarens, Q2 marked the end of their involvement. Only George Russell managed to break into the top 10 with an engine from the Germans, managing to reach sixth position.
According to Helmut Marko , advisor to the Red Bull team, a new era in Formula 1 opens in 2022: “Ferrari is ahead. Honda – or rather Red Bull Powertrains – is in second place. And Mercedes, unusually, only is third.”
Marko is convinced that Ferrari has made “a big step” from 2021 in terms of power unit performance. According to him, Red Bull is “very close”, and the Mercedes engine “is, for the first time, in third place”. The Austrian also adds that “of course, it’s something quite unknown to them, that they don’t always have to force the engine to be ahead”.
Additionally, the engine development system has been frozen from March 1 to the end of 2025, and no other performance upgrades are allowed anymore. This applies to the combustion engine, the turbocharger, the MGU-H, the exhaust, and the specification of gasoline and oil. On the other hand, the MGU-K, the control electronics and the battery can continue to be tuned until September 1, 2022.
But Marko also issued a warning in an interview on the energy drink brand’s channel, ‘ServusTV’: “Mercedes should never be ruled out. There are still chances that they will be updated until September 1. At this stage, we have to make sure we get as many points as possible. The double failure in Bahrain was even more painful.”
“Ferrari is ahead, especially in the area of electric power,” he says. “And there we hope that Honda will follow suit.”
“Chassis-wise, the Mercedes one is the most ‘bouncy’. You can see in the braking zone, Hamilton’s head is wobbling from side to side. But I also think it’s a matter of time. If they can get rid of that, they can go fine-tuning,” Marko said.
However, at least for the moment, Red Bull’s main rival is Ferrari and not Mercedes. Marko analyzes this confrontation with the Italian constructors: “Ferrari’s advantage is that they are quick from the start with all the tires and at all temperatures. That shows that the car is more docile. We have perhaps the most difficult car – a prima donna . But if you get it, the potential is there.”
It is clear that the double zero in Bahrain hurts them in terms of position in the championship. But, performance-wise, fears that Red Bull might have neglected to prepare for 2022 as they were immersed in the fight for the 2021 world championship were not confirmed. “We didn’t have our best day in Bahrain,” says Marko, “but We are still competitive.”
