Max Verstappen calls Mercedes’ new car ugly when asked about their new radical design, which has caused a massive stir since its appearance.
Mercedes aroused eyeballs when they appeared in Bahrain with their “sidepodless” design. Though the media caused the maximum hype, hardly any team has objected to the innovation so far.
But it was projected like Red Bull had a problem with their rivals’ work. The Milton-Keynes-based team clarified that they had not expressed anything similar to the reports suggested.
But on the first day in Bahrain testing, Verstappen was asked about the designs. While speaking to the media, the Dutchman said” “Ugly, isn’t it?”
Apart from that, Verstappen claims that he is not affected by the hype around the designs submitted by Mercedes. Instead, he is more focused on his team and wants to work on the areas they feel requires attention to have a successful season ahead.
Also read: Former F1 driver warns Max Verstappen that Lewis Hamilton will destroy him in the 2022 season
What advantage does Mercedes hold with their new design?
The sidepods in an F1 car are intended to guide air inside cars to provide cooling for the engine. The new sidepod design by Mercedes aims to maximize the effect and increase the downforce effect.
“It’s to accelerate the air as much as you can around the area on top of the diffuser, in order to make that ground effect absolutely as powerful as possible to push the car to the ground,” explained Ted Kravitz.
“I’m sure Red Bull are thinking, what is the benefit of that compared to ours?” said Ted. “Do we have to worry about this?”
Max Verstappen believes there is more to F1 this season
Verstappen was asked if Lewis Hamilton is the competitor to beat this year on the first day of Bahrain testing. In response, the Dutchman said that this year it is more than just hamilton.
He argues that Ferrari is also having a solid pre-season and could turn out to be a threat to his objective for 2022. Though, Ferrari is avoiding the idea of competing against Mercedes and Red Bull this year.
For them, their involvement in the title race wouldn’t be as extensive as assumed. However, they see regular podium appearances this year as a realistic target for them. It only remains to be seen how for the Prancing horses go this year.
Also read: Max Verstappen reveals the messages he exchanged with Michael Masi following his sacking
