Red Bull bosses really worried or putting on Oscar award winning act?
8 March, 2013
Christian Horner with Helmut Marko
The faces of Red Bull chiefs became notably worried as the Formula 1 winter pre-season period wrapped up recently in Spain, claims Marc Surer, a former Formula 1 driver turned German-language commentator.
Indeed, as the final test week concluded in Barcelona, Mercedes sped to the top of the time sheets, whilst Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel languished two seconds too slow.
“The faces of the (Red Bull) bosses looked worried,” Surer said in an interview with T-Online. ”They were missing two seconds to Mercedes, and that’s a lot, even if Vettel was carrying a lot of fuel. They seemed surprised by how quickly Ferrari but especially Mercedes could go.”
Sebastian Vettel during testing in Barcelona
So why the sudden problem for Red Bull?
Throughout the test period, every driver and pundit in the paddock was predicting another strong season for the reigning champions, particularly with the rules remaining basically the same as in 2012.
“Red Bull was holding back the newest parts, so that the competition could not copy them,” Surer explained. ”But they didn’t work; the car didn’t become faster.”
Another possibility is that Red Bull’s game of bluff is working just as planned.
Niki Lauda, Mercedes shareholder and chairman, told the German broadcaster RTL: “I am delighted that we showed at the last test that we are quick.
Mark Webber during testing at Jerez
“But I also know that the value of testing is extremely limited, because we do not know whether and to what extent the other teams have been bluffing.”
So yet another possibility is that Red Bull’s formerly struggling rivals have simply caught up.
“Everyone is closer together because there have been no rule changes,” said Lauda. ”So if you had a slow car, you try to catch up, while if you are Red Bull, you have more difficulty to develop your car because you were already at the top.
“We have a good car, no doubt,” the famous Austrian told Brazil’s O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper. ”But to know where we are compared to Red Bull, we need to wait for the first race.”
Related posts:
- Red Bull struggling or sandbagging as Melbourne looms large
- Vettel has a long term Red Bull contract claims Lauda
- Webber turned down Ferrari to focus on winning title with Red Bull
- Webber is back but RB8 not a winning car yet
- Red Bull bosses ooze confidence in Valencia
@Lauda Fan:
Actually, Ferrari is the best team in F1, despite RBR’s good designs in recent years.
Of course, I’m talking about the 2013 Ferrari, not, say, the trainwreck Alonso came to drive for in 2010. They’ve improved a lot, and all that remains is that good design, which they appear to have this year.
They have the strategy, pit-stops, the driver(s), the development team. Their wind-tunnel is under repair, but other than that, everything’s A-level over there.
Rbs bluffing indeed, same as they did last year. They are laughing their butts off.
So what if RBR is off the pace? They’ll adjust and hunt down the championship leader just like they’ve done to Alonso for two out of the last three seasons. C’mon people, wake up. RBR is the best team in F1 and nothing has changed…not yet. Not till NEXT year.
We will see if they struggle I for one bet they’ll start cheating again. That’s how they’ve been for 5 years now
nemo nobody:
Rubbish! Why do you even watch F1?
I agree with the person who said that we’ll never know the true value of the drivers.
For sure schumacher is not 7 x times better than raikkonen, he was just driving the right car at the right moment.
Same goes for Vettel.
Same goes for Alondo for his 2 titles.
We just speculate on the driver’s value and each one of us for sure has a favorite. This debate about who is the best is pointless. I personally think that all 22 drivers on the same car are all together in 0.5 sec gap. The best ones really close.
I see that there is a trend and most people thing that alonso is the best driver out there…well some time ago alonso was hamilton’s teammate. He did everything in his power to beat hamilton which is good, every driver should act this way but when he started to blackmail Mclaren in order to beat hamilton then there was obvious that he failed to beat him on track…at least it was obvious for me.
Butterfly: I’m gonna try one more time to make myself clear.
1) I never said anyone was better than anyone else. What I said is stats don’t lie.
2) The Alonso-Hamilton saga is old news. Please move on to more relevant issues.
3) Folks like you keep waiting for Vettel to fall flat on his face-three championships later – He keeps rolling right along. Could be along wait. 3a) If Vettel had a “lack of talent” that would have been identified long ago.
4) Vettel drives for Red Bull not Ferrari. Hypothetical situation on how who would do what is purely speculation. Nice game to play but doesn’t prove anything concrete.
5) Try and pay attention here: F. Alonso a GREAT DRIVER in his own right and will probably win more championships before he calls it a career – There – Are you a happy little girl now? Not sure just because I give credit where credit is due I’m slighting someone else. Maybe if he (Alonso) drove for that “fizzy drinks team” he would just outshine everyone else. Maybe not. We just don’t know and that’s the beauty of it all. We all get to speculate and give our opinion.
6) You make me laugh fixating on my nationality . . Seriously. . . and I’m not all together sure why it matters here. All you need to know is that I’m an Formula one race fan. That’s all the credentials I need here. I hope this clears so matters up for you.
(If not . . I’m always here for you.
)
Mark:
Remember that in 2008 Toro Rosso and Red Bull Racing were actually using the same tech from Red Bull Technology. It was a trick to allow Adrian Newey to put four near-identical cars on the grid. That’s disallowed now and both teams are independent constructors.
Tamburello_1994
My problem with the Italian media is that after Monza 2011 they started talking s*hit about how that moron from RBR deserved to drive for Ferrari after winning the race. So there he was, driving what was probably the best F1 car in the history of the sport – the Red Bull RB7 – with tons of downforce, perfect balance, traction control, it had so much grip that it could run at full speed on grass.
And, in contrast, there was Alonso driving that god-awful F150, holding his own against an infinitely superior RB7 and got no credit in the press.
People like you like to conveniently ignore the technical aspects of the sport and choose to cheer for a driver like Vettel whose contribution to the results is much less than Newey’s contribution and ignore a titan like Alonso who lost the title to RBR twice in three years. And it was 4 points in 2010, 3 in 2012 – which would have been 1 point had Schumacher not helped a bit.
If that’s how the Italian people think, then you’re all a big heap of garbage. A bunch of back-stabbing rats.
I hope you and the Italian media are exceptions.
Have a nice day.
Mark:
That Toro Rosso had a chassis made by Adrian Newey, aero kit made by the same guy, it had a Ferrari engine, *and* it was the only car on the grid with a wet setup.
Vettel’s coleague had the same car and during the race he was running on the same pace as Vettel. But he stalled on the grid, started from the pits – a mess.
Tamburello_1994:
You must be mentally reterded. I hate to ask this, but are you part of the Italian media by any chance?
If anybody who’s serious about Formula 1 as a sport says there is anybody on the grid better than Fernando Alonso, then that person is either biased or fails to see the details.
The mighty Hamilton couldn’t hold his own against Alonso during an entire season, given similar cars.
The problem with Vettel, is that he’s been paired with excellent cars all his career, that if he suddenly fails to deliver, people are going to blame the car, not his lack of skill.
I would love to see him trying to drive the launch-spec F2012. He would have been on the same level as Felipe.
@tamburello
yeah man… I agree, stats speak for themselves. If “someone” needs to bring “woulds, and coulds, and maybes, and probablysh” comments like “Vettel can only do #1 well – although Alonso and Hamilton would smoke him in the same car.” then proves your lack of knowledge about a sport that is 90% math and 10% talent.
People say Vettel cant do shit without the car hes got, well, he managed to win a race with a mid range car, the Toro Rosso. The thing is, RB is known to be slow at straight but fast at corners, so whats the deal? Ferrari is hell fast at straights, McLaren too… but they didnt win 3 in a row. Facts. Period.
Cry me a river!!
This constant Vettel-Alonzo-Hamilton-who’s better back and forth is really getting tiresome. Trying to split hairs on the why’s and whatevers is opinionated speculation at best. Fact of the matter is S. Vettel is a three times consecutive worlds champion, And no amount of whining about any other driver(s) is gonna take that away from him. If it was so easy everyone, including a certain Ferrari driver could do it. But he didn’t, Did he?
Stats don’t lie.
WORD WALL. Kthxbye.
@bitterfly sore looser, keeping on telling himself the same lies forever.
Vettel has beaten Alonso in all measures so far, get over it and stop trolling about the car.
Alonso not among top 10 drivers of all time.
Alonso cant even beat his teammates.
Massa for the title!
If you really think RBR’s success is down to Vettel’s driving, you are deluded.
Formula 1 has two disciplines:
1. Qualifying: you must get one fast lap and people have to jump out of your way – you have the track to yourself.
2. Race: you have to race everybody, implement strategy, keep the tires alive, pit, the works.
Vettel can only do #1 well – although Alonso and Hamilton would smoke him in the same car.
Alonso can do both, which is why he’s been getting the result he has in the last years.
Lewis is the driver on the grid that’s closest to Alonso, although he appears to lack the consistency that Alonso has. Still, you get any of those two in your team, you’re okay – provided you don’t botch your pitstops (McLaren 2012).
Just wait and see the incredible amount of whining on Vettel’s part if the RB9 isn’t perfect.
I guess these germans have the mentality that the team must provide a perfect car and they have to win even if it means running on the track all by themselves. Schumacher had the same mentality, which is why I think he’s trash, too.
Raikkonen would be up there with Alonso & Hamilton – he certainly has the skill – but he’s so lazy it’s unbelievable.
On skill alone, I would rate Vettel on the same level as Button.
That’s how I see it.
You know buttsecs, you shouldnt be writing crap around RB posts, doesnt suit your “I love alonso’s d*ck style”.
Just sayin…
I still can’t believe that some people (especially Ferrari fans) don’t understand that every team pushes the rules. Just because Red Bull have had noses that flexed after passing tests and… what else is it? Engine maps? What makes them cheaters again? What about Ferrari’s flexing floors that were banned? Or Ferrari’s flexing rear wings that were banned? How about double diffusers? Those things we’re the craziest interpretation of rules ever seen. ALL teams push the rules. Are Williams cheaters with their blown wheel nuts? Red Bull has been called out lately because their performance has been the best and some of their ideas have been easily visible. It was Ferrari who were the “cheaters” just a couple years ago because they were the best. No team stays away from loop holes.
@Fools – You’re no fool. Spot on mate.
Exactly the type article you see seven days before before the start of the season. – Doing exactly what it was intended.
in all the pictures above. they look confused or worried. I like how Yalla chooses there pictures wisely for each article.
Of course they are bluffing. They do the same thing every year and it has become pathetic. Get Newey out of formula 1 so we can watch a fair fight !
You know, Mark, you shouldn’t try to be clever about these things. It doesn’t suit your style.
Just saying…
Everyone knows what happens if racers act. I remember some racer acting the whole 2012 saying “we are not worried, battle is between Lewis and me”. Burn!
Nobody has time to act that much in this sport. It’s gotta be for real.
And it shouldn’t surprise anybody that they got it wrong.
Australia is the start, we might see teams from the midfield doing something incredible, but this only one round of 20.
I hope Red bull have the same pace as other, and than we know who is Vettel comparing to Hamilton and Alonso
Even if they were worried they wouldn’t show it so it’s all bread and circuses until Melbourne.
Can’t wait till Melbourne.
Heads are gonna turn and some people are going to be surprised.