P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Ex-Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone believes that Mercedes would have avoided enduring a winless season in 2023 if Max Verstappen
“Red Bull’s Max Verstappen had an outstanding 2023 season, securing a record-breaking 19 victories out of 22 races and amassing a total of 575 points, thanks to the superiority of the RB19 car. Meanwhile, Mercedes continued to struggle for the second year in a row, trailing a significant 451 points behind Red Bull. Although they abandoned their failed ‘zeropod’ concept halfway through the season and managed to secure second place ahead of Ferrari, they failed to win a race for the first time since 2011. Bernie Ecclestone, the former F1 supremo, criticized both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell for their performances, stating that Hamilton failed to deliver and Russell wasn’t as good as he thought. Ecclestone praised Red Bull’s Team Principal Christian Horner for building a strong team that has been unbeatable in the past two seasons. He also believed that Verstappen would have succeeded if he had been driving for Ferrari or McLaren. Red Bull will unveil their RB20 car on February 15th, while Mercedes will reveal their revamped W15 machine a day earlier at Silverstone.”
