Honda chief explains Mercedes and Ferrari advantage

Mercedes have been dominating F1 for the past 5 years by constantly having the fastest package on the circuit.

Ferrari were a close second in the last season but still way off pace during crucial stages of the campaign.

However, they have cemented their position as the second placed team, one that could be a good enough challenger this season too.

Now, Honda are on their way up, after having a miserable spell with McLaren.

With the initial data that they have been receiving, rumors are that they are already ahead of Renault and could help Red Bull launch a good challenge for the title.

Honda motorsport chief Masashi Yamamoto has confirmed that Honda would be starting from third position within the constructors and will be making a surge for the top later on in the season.

“We will make a big effort during the winter, and now of course.

“At least we would like to start from third within the manufacturers, then try to catch the frontrunners up during the season.” he said.

Yamamoto also confirmed that Mercedes and Ferrari know how to bend the rules and exploit the grey areas, something that Honda still need to learn from.

“We are not really keen to say a specific time, but Mercedes and Ferrari have loads of knowledge of the grey areas [of the rules], so they are still ahead of us.

“But after four years of our development and trying, we think we are now finding the right direction and where to go – much clearer than last year, or two years ago.

“So we think we can speed up our development.” Yamamoto concluded.