Toto Wolff sends message to Christian Horner as he addresses legality of new Mercedes car

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Toto Wolff has dismissed suggestions that Mercedes’ updated car design for the upcoming Formula 1 season is against the rules. The Silver Arrows team boss believes F1 chiefs will “be okay” with the changes made to the W13, which turned up for the first day of testing on Thursday with sidepods that were virtually non-existent.

The shape of the car was certainly very different to the model which was first unveiled by the team last month, and which took part in the Barcelona shakedown.

Instead, the bodywork in Bahrain was extremely narrow, with a much different design compared to any other car currently on the grid.

It has been claimed that Red Bull boss Christian Horner was left unimpressed by the changes, and told Auto Motor und Sport that “some parts are not legal”.

However, Red Bull released a statement in which they denied that Horner had said anything of the sort.

“So we are clear, we have made no official comment regarding Mercedes’ car and will not be doing so,” the team said.

Under FIA rules, eight teams would need to form a “super majority” by voting against the design or a specific part for it to be outlawed.

And Wolff has said he feels confident that will not happen.

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“It’s clear that sometimes when you come with an innovation, it creates the kind of debate that we are having here,” he told reporters at the track in Bahrain.

“That’s why that was expected. We have the new governance with the super majority that’s needed.

“My opinion is that I would have preferred to stay with the old system and if a team comes up with an innovation, possibly you can’t take it off the car if it’s compliant with the regulations.

“I think the FIA and Formula 1 will for sure handle that with diligence, in the spirit of the sport. We were keen in not running alone with that, but being in touch with the FIA, that’s why I think it will be okay.”

He later added: “The process is really clear, when you go in a specific development direction with your team, having the FIA part of scrutinising it, you are exchanging CAD data and making them part of the process.

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“The car, we are really proud of what we have achieved in terms of concept, but now we need to make it go fast.

“It’s a development direction that we like. It’s about tuning the car. We’re experimenting a lot and approaching it with curiosity.”

Meanwhile, F1 managing director Ross Brawn has warned Mercedes to expect at least some form of official protest over the design.

“There is no doubt that the Mercedes concept is something we didn’t anticipate,” he told Sky Sports.

“It’s a very extreme interpretation of the regulations and inevitably there is going to be a lot of debate. It’s impressive. I think this is the great thing about the innovation in Formula 1.

“It’s just keeping them within boundaries which are sensible and there are no compromises in terms of the objectives that we wanted to achieve.

“I think you have to be fair. When a team comes up with an idea with innovation, with novelty, you shouldn’t penalise it straight away.

“But I think, as it’s understood more, and the FIA really as the regulators will know everything that’s going on there.

“We don’t as Formula 1 because we’re not entitled to have that information, but the regulators will know everything that’s going on.

“I think they’re okay with it so far but of course a team may come in and raise an objection that the FIA have to consider and then you have a problem.

“I’ve been through that many times where your idea is okay, the FIA agree its okay and a team comes in with a perspective that has never been considered and have an argument that’s valid.

“I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of discussion about it but it’s impressive. For a set of rules which everybody said were too prescriptive, we’re seeing all these solutions.”

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