McLaren "don't like it" but no protest against Racing Point 'Pink Mercedes'

Change your timezone:
McLaren "don't like it" but no protest against Racing Point 'Pink Mercedes'
The RP20 has caused controversy since it was unveiled in pre-season testing
McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl has confirmed his Formula 1 team will not be protesting the Racing Point RP20 - a car dubbed the 'Pink Mercedes'.
When Racing Point rolled out its 2020 challenger at Barcelona for pre-season testing many were quick to point out the similarities between it and the 2019 title-winning Mercedes.
The team acknowledged this and admitted to designing its car using photos of the W10.
Talks of protests against the design grew rapidly, but McLaren has now firmly distanced itself from such actions, despite Seidl openly saying he is not a fan of this method of working.
“McLaren, we can only speak for ourselves, and we have announced there is absolutely no intention to launch any protest, because I think also there are no grounds for that," Seidl told a media conference call including GPFans on Friday.
"Mercedes and Racing Point have chosen to go down this route which, to be honest, I think there is room in the regulations to do what they did.
“Do I like it? Of course, I don’t like it, but at the same time, if it’s possible in the regulations to do something like that, to have this kind of co-operation in terms of sharing wind tunnel technology and so on, there’s no reason to complain.
“I simply think it’s important for Formula 1, without further clarifications towards the future, to make sure that there’s a certain limitation of what you can do.”
Aside from believing that protesting the RP20 would be a frivolous task, Seidl also sees it as a waste of resources and would prefer to see his team's focus inwards.
He added: “In the end, I prefer to focus on ourselves.
“We know exactly what we have to do on our side, on McLaren’s side, in order to make the next steps, and that’s where I use my energy together with the team.”
Before you go...
Hamilton continues support for equality with new helmet design
Live blog: Friday at the Austrian Grand Prix
Related
More F1 news
Latest F1 news
Recommended by the editors
Australian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton is the biggest winner from the Australian Grand Prix - this is why
Australian Grand Prix
F1 Australian Grand Prix 2026 results: Final classification with penalties applied
F1 2026
F1’s new cars in 2026 are how much slower? Australian Grand Prix confirms the sad truth
F1 Explained
F1 Engine Compression Ratio - What is it and why is it so controversial?

Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 News Today: Lewis Hamilton will hold FIA accountable as new Mercedes evidence emerges
- 1 hour ago
Lewis Hamilton got a cow and you will not believe what it is called
- Yesterday 22:55
F1 star Oscar Piastri reveals the cause of bizarre Australian Grand Prix crash
- Yesterday 21:54
'Shut up and focus': George Russell's message to Lewis Hamilton after Australian Grand Prix
- Yesterday 20:56
F1 legend Lewis Hamilton has a plan to hunt down Mercedes: 'Not impossible'
- Yesterday 19:54
Honda issue strong statement after Aston Martin DNF at F1 Australian Grand Prix
- Yesterday 18:54
Most read
FIA announce late Mercedes penalty verdict after front row lockout at Australian Grand Prix
- 7 march
F1 News Today: Adrian Newey in firing line as Aston Martin may deliberately DNF
- 3 march
F1 Qualifying Results: Australian Grand Prix times and positions - Verstappen crashes out, Russell dominates
- 7 march
Aston Martin set to DNF at Australian Grand Prix as Alonso and Stroll fear nerve damage
- 5 march
F1 Commentators: Meet the Sky Sports and Channel 4 teams in 2026
- 6 march
Sky F1 presenter confirms TV return after surgery which included having voice box removed
- 2 march
Related news
McLaren reveal contingency plan over tense Norris and Piastri incident
McLaren F1 rivalry given new light as stars race to championship title
F1's best young driver...was released by McLaren this year
McLaren F1 chief issues Norris and Piastri instructions ahead of Belgian GP
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Lewis Hamilton
- Charles Leclerc
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Franco Colapinto
- Pierre Gasly
- Isack Hadjar
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Carlos Sainz
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli
- George Russell
- Oliver Bearman
- Esteban Ocon
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Liam Lawson
- Arvid Lindblad
- Gabriel Bortoleto
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Valtteri Bottas
- Sergio Pérez
Races
-
Grand Prix of Australia 2026
-
Grand Prix of China 2026
-
Grand Prix of Japan 2026
-
Grand Prix of Bahrain 2026
-
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2026
-
Miami Grand Prix 2026
-
Grand Prix du Canada 2026
-
Grand Prix De Monaco 2026
-
Gran Premio de Barcelona-Catalunya 2026
-
Grand Prix of Austria 2026
-
Grand Prix of Great Britain 2026
-
Grand Prix of Belgium 2026
-
Grand Prix of Hungary 2026
-
Dutch Grand Prix 2026
-
Grand Prix of Italy 2026
-
Gran Premio de España 2026
-
Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2026
-
Grand Prix of Singapore 2026
-
Grand Prix of the United States 2026
-
Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2026
-
Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2026
-
Las Vegas Grand Prix 2026
-
Qatar Grand Prix 2026
-
Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2026
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Editorial & corporate information
Avenue HQ
10–12 East Parade
Leeds
LS1 2BH
United Kingdom Regional correspondence
View contact page
Realtimes Network
- Authors
- Privacy and Terms
- RSS
- Contact
- Advertise
- Android
- iOS
- Publishing principles
- Corrections policy
- Ownership & funding
- F1 Tickets
- Privacy
Copyright (©) 2017 - 2026 GPFans.com
Realtimes Network












