Lando Norris has stated Red Bull has a “beautiful” advantage with its F1 power unit after studying its GPS data at the Bahrain pre-season test.
Red Bull's engine, which has been built in collaboration with Ford this year, has caught the attention of the paddock at this early stage.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff claimed it is one second faster than competitors on the straight - a view that Max Verstappen shot down.
But several drivers, including Norris, have concluded that the Red Bull engine is a step ahead of the competition.
Assessing Red Bull's strong start to the new year, Norris highlighted the team possess the ability to unlock a “beautiful” piece of lap time through its energy deployment.
“Australia is a very different track, at the same time,” Norris told media including RacingNews365.
“But when someone just has a deployment advantage, that's just a beautiful bit of lap time to have in your pocket. Without trying, you can just go quicker.
“So we'll see. Also, from a car point of view, they seem to be performing well.”
McLaren is running Mercedes power units this year as it looks to defend its double championship success from the 2025 campaign.
But as the first Bahrain test draws to a close, Norris has concluded that it is also running behind Ferrari in the pecking order.
“We don't seem to be quite at the level of the Ferrari either at the minute,” he said.
“I know we are going to improve and we're going to make steps forward, but I'm sure they are as well.
“We have to wait to see. There's no point trying to guess these things. We'll do all the work we can and maximise our efforts at the minute.
“But we've got a pretty big step to make to be confident of beating them, that's for sure.”
Also interesting:
In this video, we explore a fascinating Mercedes engine theory that is engulfing the F1 paddock. We break down how it works, why it matters, and why this advantage — if real — may be brilliant, legal… but only temporary.
Most read
In this article
Join the conversation!