Red Bull stays alert: "They are possibly going to be the big threat"

1 February 2022 at 18:12

Last update 1 February 2022 at 19:07

GPblog.com

Given the rule changes that await Formula 1 in 2022, it's harder than ever to predict the balance of power this year. Will it be between Red Bull Racing and Mercedes again, or will Ferrari and McLaren also be around the corner? Jonathan Wheatley, technical director of Red Bull Racing, takes all possible scenarios into account.

According to Wheatley, it is impossible to predict which teams will be in the best shape for the 2022 Formula One season. "You only have your own car from last year as a reference, " he says in a YouTube interview with Jack Threlfall. "You do get little snippets of information from other teams, but you don't know if they are telling the truth or just trying to worry you."

Will Ferrari make things difficult for Red Bull?

The big threat in 2022 could just come from Ferrari, according to Wheatley. He thought the powerplant in particular looked very strong towards the end of the season. According to the Brit, Ferrari was overwhelmingly the third-fastest team at that point, with two strong drivers in Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on top of that. "I wasn't sure how well they would gel together as teammates, but that seems to be faring well. Therefore, I think Ferrari will possibly be a big threat this year," Wheatley stated.

Ferrari has been on the rise again since 2020, which began to take serious shape last season. Initially, the team from Maranello was competing with McLaren, but the Woking-based team was ultimately defeated after Ferrari came up with a major engine update late in the season, which was mainly aimed at the 2022 season.