Following last year’s Russian Grand Prix, after Mercedes AMG had clinched their first constructors’ championship under the Mercedes-Benz marque, I wrote a piece explaining and admiring their arduous road to 2014.
The admiration was because unlike other top teams in Formula One in recent times, the Silver Arrows had sacrificed attaining short-term glory during the latter part of the V8 era, in focus of something much grander.
Now that they have achieved a maiden constructors’ title and a drivers’ world title in the hands of Lewis Hamilton, one of their rivals are crying foul play.
That is of course in reference to Red Bull Racing’s threat to quit the sport, unless engine parity is introduced to allow them to catch up to Mercedes AMG’s performance.
One important question to ask here is have the hundreds of staff at Brackley and at the engine development factory in Brixworth done anything that breaches the sporting regulations?
If developing and manufacturing an unbelievably fast and reliable engine, within the given parameters of the regulations is considered illegal, then by all means amerce them.
The irony of this debate is that it was brought up by Red Bull – the team who claimed eight championships in four years with great supremacy. At the helm was driver Sebastian Vettel and chief designer Adrian Newey.
During their reign between 2010 and 2013, the energy drink-backed outfit was no stranger to controversy.
In 2011 it was found that the team’s considerable aerodynamic advantage was accredited to an ‘exhaust blown diffuser’, created through the perspicacity of Newey that no other team could replicate.
However, that was deemed illegal and outside of the regulations regarding aerodynamics, hence why it was banned. Even after its banning, rivals team were suspicious that Red Bull had still some form of exhaust gas blowing for an aero advantage in their chassis.
When analysing the cases of Mercedes AMG’s dominance versus Red Bull’s, the key things to underline or highlight, are that what the latter did was illegal and what the former is doing is perfectly acceptable.
Let’s not forget the Pirelli-gate saga in 2013 either.
At the start of the season, Lotus and Ferrari had cars that were built to look after their tyres. The likes of Red Bull and Mercedes AMG did not.
It wasn’t until Red Bull lobbied vigorously with the FIA and Pirelli to create more conservative rubber. And look who benefitted from that in the second part of the season.
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and Lotus’ Kimi Räikkönen had both lost their advantage and thus the championship to Vettel, who attained his fourth crown.
The fact of the matter is then that Mercedes AMG are not doing anything illegal as they dominate the sport, nor as a matter of fact are they upsetting all of their competitors like Red Bull have in the past.
If only one team is unhappy, then that should be tough love to them for not making the gains that their rivals have.
Ferrari – who were traditionally the big whingers of Formula One – this year have taken the challenge to topple the reigning world champions through performance on track.
From the results at the Australian Grand Prix, it is indubitable that the Italian team have made big gains from where they were last year.
The possibility of the Scuderia winning a race or two this year sounds likely too. For Mercedes AMG, this success with created with the careful application of forward planning.
Ross Brawn, before stepping down as team principal, acquired leading names such as Aldo Costa, Paddy Lowe, Toto Wolff, Niki Lauda and even the jewel in their line-up – Hamilton.
Their domination at the front brought everyone one of the closest and most intense championship rivalries last year, between Hamilton and Rosberg. This year could easily see a repeat of that.
To summarise then, the Silver Arrows’ hard and honest work which saw them give up short term success during Red Bull’s era of reign, should be looked at as an illustration to other teams wanting to achieve the same success.
Audiences were not depraved of a ‘proper’ championship battle last year and the Mercedes-Benz power-unit is in no way breaching any of the current regulations.
NBC’s pit-lane reporter Will Buxton, in his latest blog epitomises this ongoing farce with his conclusion that “Perhaps it is time to leave racing to racers. And the bile for the fizzy drinks.”
Yes, leave the racing to racers, because the sport’s cyclic nature will see another team emerge into the shoes of the incumbent champions in a few years’ time.
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