“I am Convinced that we are Mercedes’ Main Competitor” – Red Bull

Ahead of the 2020 Formula One season, Scuderia Ferrari is keeping its cards close to its chest. So, many are under the impression that the battle will be between Mercedes and Red Bull. However, Mercedes suddenly threw a curveball when they introduced their revolutionary DAS system.

On the subject of DAS, Helmut Marko thinks that this new-fangled system will give Mercedes the edge over Red Bull. Last week, the Dual-Axis Steering system turned plenty of heads became the new Rubik’s Cube for tech experts.

The FIA even confirmed that it did not violate any technical regulations. However, the burning question will be its effectiveness in race situations. This will be a huge unknown for the remaining 9 teams until the Australian Grand Prix begins.

“They win the race against us because they have no understeer when cornering in tight corners,” the Austrian told AutoBild. “They will achieve that with DAS.”

According to the Red Bull advisor, the system will possibly hand the German team an advantage of 0.2s per lap. Marko also believes that this 0.2 second gap will persist until the end of the 2020 Formula One season.

What did Red Bull driver Max Verstappen say?

Interestingly, when the media posed this question to Max Verstappen, the 22-year old was not too fussed. He admitted, “I’m not too bothered about it. It’s also not my job. I drive the car, and I try to drive it as fast as I can with what I have.

“It’s up to the team to see what’s allowed, what’s coming onto the car, and I just give my feedback with what’s on the car.”

As has been the case onmany occasions, Red Bull used the first test to understand the car. All talk about pace was ignored, as they practiced longer runs on harder compounds with higher fuel.

However, when the second test begins, the Austrian team will take things very seriously. Marko concluded, “We will be driving the Melbourne trim, especially on Friday. I assume that others will do the same, but I am convinced that we are Mercedes’ main competitor.”