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In line with what several other drivers have pointed out, Max Verstappen also revealed that he is very skeptical of Mercedes' performance in the pre-season testing sessions. The Dutchman claimed that it is typical of the team to underplay their position ahead of the season.
As reported by Motorsport, Verstappen claimed he expects Mercedes to show up at the Sakhir Grand Prix fully transformed and pass it off as a miracle pulled off by the team within a week. The Red Bull driver said:
“If someone is doing well or a team that everyone expects to do well, then it’s: ‘Oh no, we’re definitely not the favourite’. And then a week later, when things do go well, all of a sudden it’s: ‘Oh no, but we turned it around completely within a week. Not normal, unbelievable work. Thanks to all people in the factory!’”
Pointing out that Mercedes saw a similar turnaround from pre-season testing to the season opener in Sakhir last year, the Dutchman added, saying:
“And they were still very strong during the first race weekend.”
While Lewis Hamilton has very clearly denied any possibility of the team coming in strong at the Bahrain Grand Prix, only time will tell where each team truly stands.
Max Verstappen reveals the team he expects to be greatest threat based on pre-season test
When asked to name the team he expects to put up a challenge this season, Max Verstappen pointed to Ferrari. He feels that the Italian constructor has shown consistent results and minimal problems throughout both pre-season test sessions this month.
Claiming that the Prancing Horses stand the greatest chance of starting the season off strong, the Red Bull world champion said:
“That shows that they clearly have a stable car at the moment. It just looks good for them, they have had very few problems as well. We will see next week who is fastest, but so far they have had a very good test.”
Highlighting Ferrari's struggles over the last few years, Max Verstappen added, saying:
“The last two years weren’t great for them, so you automatically start looking at this season a bit earlier than some of the other teams. It’s more than normal that they started earlier than us on the 2022 car and that’s OK as well. In the end, with these new cars, the development rate during the season is the most important thing.”
F1 is set to hit the track for the first race of the 2022 season this week in Bahrain, where for the first time this year, we will get a real idea of where each team stands this season.
