Former Mercedes F1 boss slams Red Bull rivals

F1 News & Gossip

Former Mercedes boss slams Red Bull rivals

Norbert Haug is impressed and disappointed with F1's 2023 season

Jay Winter

Wednesday 22 November 2023 12:12

Former Mercedes motorsport vice president Norbert Haug has labelled Red Bull's Formula 1 rivals as "inferior", expressing his concerns about the lack of competitiveness from the rest of the field.

To say Red Bull have dominated the the 2023 F1 season would be an understatement.

Max Verstappen and the RB19 have obliterated countless records this season, as the Dutchman claimed his third consecutive leading Red Bull to their sixth constructors' championship and their first ever one-two in the drivers' standings.

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Whilst this outstanding season has impressed Haug, the German is also incredibly disappointed with the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes.

Max Verstappen on his Red Bull RB19 in Las Vegas

Mercedes has failed to register a win in the 2023 season

"Such a clear superiority or, conversely, inferiority, depending on the perspective from which one views the competitive situation, has never existed in the history of Formula 1 since 1950," said Haug to Deutsche Presse-Agentur.

Haug: 2023 competition not good enough

Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez claimed the team's first ever 1-2 finish in the drivers' standings

The 70-year-old praised Verstappen and emphasised that this could by no means be the basis for an exciting World Championship in the long run.

"As much as this speaks to the overwhelming strength of Verstappen and Red Bull Racing," Haug stated.

"It clearly describes that the competition in 2023 was by no means good enough."

Although fans have been reassured by pundits and teams that the gap to Red Bull is closing, the Austrian team's dominance has meant that Christian Horner's team have been able to start work on the 2024 car well before their rivals.