Another Mercedes one-two
There Mercedes W17 it is undoubtedly the car to beat in this first glimpse of 2026, given that Russell and Antonelli have conquered the entire front row in qualifying and a one-two in the race in both Australia and China – albeit in reversed positions.
This advantage translates into a +31 over Ferrari in the constructors’ standings, which becomes a sensational +80 over McLaren and a +86 over Red Bull in just two race weekends.
he asked Luigi Mazzola (present on Instagram at this address) – for 21 years in Maranello in various roles, including that of technical manager of the test area in the Schumacher era – whether Mercedes is really expressing its maximum potential.
Intelligent masking
Engineer Mazzola, China has essentially confirmed what was seen in Australia, namely that Mercedes is the car to beat. Could ADUO prove fundamental in Ferrari’s chase? Or is it possible that Mercedes is racing ‘safely’ without pushing its engine to the limit?
“It’s clear that ADUO could be very important for the chase not only of Ferrari, but also of McLaren and Red Bull. This is a necessary system if we intend to maintain a certain balance in the championship and not see a team that easily wins all the races unless there are reliability problems.
With regard to Mercedes, I think is racing and masking the situation a bit because for them it’s too easy when you have to express performance, express it. They don’t make much effort. I think they are smart enough not to show their full potentialso as not to then run into a sort of BOP – balance of performance – of any kind, even if it doesn’t exist in F1. But they could find some trick like that so – intelligently in my opinion – they mask a bit.”
