© Steve Etherington for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.
Mercedes Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin says Red Bull was “the class act from the test”, while Red Bull boss Christian Horner says Mercedes is trying to “move the spotlight away from themselves”.
With Red Bull having a much better time in testing than Mercedes, many are saying 2021 will be the closest season yet. Mercedes’ Andrew Shovlin agrees.
“No one up and down the paddock can pinpoint exactly where they are,” the Briton said.
“There’s a few trends that have come out. I would say Red Bull are ahead on performance.
“They’re the class act from the test, but it’s a test, it’s not a race, and it’s one event out of 23.”
Shovlin expects Mercedes to have a “close battle” with Red Bull throughout the season.
“Red Bull are a fierce adversary, they’ve got a strong package and clearly came out of the box very, very quick.
“The result of that is, across the season, and across different kinds of track layouts, I’m sure you’ll see us move forwards and backwards relative to them.
“I’m sure we’ll have a close championship this year,” concluded Mercedes’ top engineer.
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Shovlin’s words have been echoed by both Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton, however, Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner says Mercedes constantly talking up Red Bull is a “game” Mercedes is playing.
“There is no denying that after the smooth running of the three-day test in Bahrain, there seems to be an excitement out there that we can end Mercedes’ seven-year dominance of F1,” Horner told Red Bull’s official website.
“But we had a debrief within the Team after the test and it is fair to say we are a little more cautious on the subject and we cannot underestimate the size of the challenge ahead of us on many fronts.
“We know that Mercedes have not won by mistake for the past seven years; they are a quality, class team that will be motivated to come back strong.
“We saw it a couple of years ago where there was a similar story during pre-season testing and then they smashed it out of the park at the first race in Melbourne.
“So, you cannot take anything for granted. And at this stage it is good that we have a solid basis from which to develop the car, rather than fixing an inherent problem.
“Of course, Mercedes are trying to move the spotlight away from themselves, which is all part of the game, but the reality is they are the reigning seven-time world champions and it is down to us to close that gap and put up a fight,” concluded Horner.
