Red Bull still want FIA answers over Mercedes improvement despite request being thrown out

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Red Bull are continuing to question the FIA about Mercedes’ power unit improvements despite the request being with dismissed. The Milton Keynes-based outfit are 36 points behind the Silver Arrows in the Constructors’ Championship.

Mercedes have triumphed in each of the last seven years and are looking to complete a sweep of the titles in the current turbo hybrid era.

It is tight at the top in both the constructors’ and drivers’ standings as the season enters the final straight with just six races remaining.

Red Bull star Max Verstappen currently leads seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton after the Brit slipped to fifth from P3 due to a strategy error at the Turkish Grand Prix.

Verstappen came home in second with teammate Sergio Perez completing the podium but with Valtteri Bottas claiming the win and Hamilton performing well before the mistake, Mercedes will be pleased with their position.

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Mercedes were simply too fast at Istanbul Park and Red Bull are once again questioning how their rivals found such improvements in straight-line speed.

Red Bull’s request for the FIA to investigate the Mercedes power unit was thrown out recently – and driver programme boss Helmut Marko admitted that while he does not suspect any foul play from the German manufacturer, his team is not going to stop asking questions.

“According to measurements of the World Championship runner-up, Mercedes has been mobilising much more power since Silverstone, especially when accelerating,” Michael Schmidt wrote for Auto Motor und Sport.

“The Silver Arrows were faster on the straights in Turkey with the DRS closed than Red Bull with it open.

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“Team boss Christian Horner can only explain this power boost by the fact that the rival found power somewhere and somehow. One suspects that Brixworth is fishing in grey areas.

“An initial enquiry to the FIA received a negative response. But Red Bull continues to keep the issue simmering. According to Horner, further suspicions are being investigated.

“Mercedes claims that the engines have been identical since the beginning of the season. In the course of the season, they have only improved the driveability somewhat.

“Because Williams and McLaren have also suddenly improved since the Hungarian GP, the suspicion has been circulating that Mercedes is simply releasing more power for Saturday and Sunday in general and is therefore now paying for it with damage.

Schmidt reported that one engineer denied the claims: “Nothing has changed in the calibration of the engines.”

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff gave a simple reason for the improved performance of his team’s car recently.

The Austrian believes the Silver Arrows understand their car better, allowing them to set the car up differently and more effectively.

“We understand our car better under the rules, which caused us problems at the beginning of the year,” Wolff said.

“The car has more speed than in spring and summer because we set it up differently.”

Formula 1 returns to Texas for the United States Grand Prix on October 24, with Red Bull’s Verstappen holding a slender six-point lead over Hamilton.

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