Red Bull F1 motorsport adviser Helmut Marko has claimed that the atmosphere at rivals Mercedes F1 is “quite tense” after James Bowles’ departure.
James Bowles, who was strategy director at Mercedes F1, has joined Williams F1 as team principal to replace Jost Capito, who resigned at the end of 2022.
James Bowles, 43, was a key figure in Mercedes F1’s recent history of unprecedented domination, including eight consecutive constructors’ titles between 2014 and 2021.
Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff has insisted that the departure of James Bowles has been approved by the team, but Helmut Marko has suggested otherwise in an interview with Sport1.de. .
Asked if he feared Williams F1 would effectively become Mercedes’ B team, Marko said: “No, I have completely different information.”
“Bowles is said to have gone out of his own accord and took a good engineer with him, which my sources say is making the atmosphere at Mercedes tense.”
Helmut Marko believes James Bowles’ departure could have a direct negative impact on Mercedes F1, but he is still convinced that Mercedes will be the biggest threat to Red Bull Racing in 2023. .
“We’ll find out,” continued Helmut Marko.
“But I believe Mercedes will be the biggest challenger for the title defense.
Mercedes F1 had a very tough season last year, slipping to third place in the Constructors’ Championship, but aims to return to title contention in 2023.
George Russell became the first teammate since 2016 to beat Lewis Hamilton all season, and the team’s only win of 2022.
Category: F1 / red bull / mercedes