George Russell believes Mercedes does not have the same dominant engine advantage it enjoyed during the last major power unit regulation change in 2014, saying rival manufacturers Ferrari and Red Bull are now operating at a very similar level.
Mercedes began the new season strongly with a 1–2 finish in Australia, setting the early pace in Formula 1’s latest era as competitors work to close the gap.
Despite predictions that Mercedes and its High Performance Powertrains division would once again produce the standout engine of the new generation, Russell suggested that the power units from Ferrari and Red Bull are performing very close to the level of Mercedes’ W17.
Ferrari continues its long tradition of producing competitive engines for both its factory team and customer squads, while Red Bull Powertrains and Audi have spent several years developing their own power units in preparation for the new regulations.
For Red Bull Powertrains, this marks its first full entry into engine development. The project has included recruiting engineers from Mercedes and appointing long-time Brixworth engineer Ben Hodgkinson as technical director.
Given how closely matched the engines appear to be, Russell believes Mercedes’ early success is due more to the strength of the W17 chassis than to any clear power unit advantage.
Because of that, he does not think the current regulation cycle mirrors 2014, especially as Mercedes-powered customer teams are now able to compete on a much more equal footing.
Meanwhile, other headlines from media day at the Chinese Grand Prix included Aston Martin dismissing speculation about battery issues affecting Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, while Max Verstappen admitted he finds the appeal of “old-school” endurance racing outside of Formula 1 intriguing.
George Russell said the current Formula 1 landscape cannot be compared to 2014, when Mercedes held a clear power unit advantage over every other manufacturer.
Back then, he explained, no team using a Mercedes engine was truly challenged by rivals. Today, however, the situation is very different.
“The last two championships were won by a car with a Mercedes power unit in the back,” Russell said, pointing out that McLaren has already shown it can compete directly with Mercedes.
He also noted that Ferrari and Red Bull appear to have produced engines that are very close in performance to Mercedes’ unit. Because of that, Russell believes the main performance differences currently come from the cars themselves rather than the engines.
According to Russell, Mercedes deserves more credit for the strength of its W17 chassis this season.
“There’s been a lot of talk about the engine, and of course the engine is great, but the car is fantastic as well, and it isn’t getting the credit it deserves,” he said.
Russell also expects the competition to tighten quickly. He pointed out that Max Verstappen was not in contention during the previous race weekend, while his teammate Isack Hadjar still managed to qualify third.
Because of that, Russell suggested Verstappen would normally be expected to challenge near the front on a typical Saturday.
Additional reporting was provided by Mat Coch and Thomas Maher.