Astonishing Mercedes claim made by former F1 driver

Seven-time F1 grand prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya has suggested Mercedes could have several seconds worth of pace in reserve.

The Brackley-based squad impressed at the Barcelona shakedown event last week, tallying the most laps of any team with 500 tours of the circuit.

It also set respectable times during the test - however lap times and extracting pace were not on the agenda of most teams.

Nevertheless, Mercedes' impressive start to the sport's new era under fresh technical regulations has left it being labelled as the early favourite ahead of the season.

Speaking to the AS Colombia podcast, Montoya has claimed he heard Mercedes is still holding back significant pace.

"If you hear what I hear - I think they didn't show everything by a long shot,” Montoya said.

“I've heard they can still be three to four seconds faster.

"They worked a reliable program and drove a lot of laps, but if they really start pushing ... then it could be very different.”

Mercedes' power unit was consistently reliable throughout the shakedown test, as its customer teams McLaren and Alpine did not seem to run into major issues relating to the engine.

As the new season ticks closer, Montoya posed a theory that the teams who are also running the Mercedes engine could benefit greatly during the campaign.

"Some teams will interpret things correctly and some will not,” he said.

“But if Mercedes turns out to be really dominant, will that also mean that all Mercedes teams are in top form?"