Racing Point's car already caused a stir during the winter tests in Barcelona. Not only was it fast, but it also looked a lot like the Mercedes. In Hungary that speed really came out during the race for the first time. The expectation is that more teams will follow Renault's example and protest against Racing Point.
At least that's what Dr. Helmut Marko of Red Bull Racing said last weekend. Whether his team will also file a protest, he didn't say. He did make it clear what he thinks of the Racing Point by saying that AlphaTauri will have to spend a lot less money from now on if the 'pink Mercedes' is approved.
Yet a lot of dissatisfaction in the paddock
Although at first their was some silence from the competition, there seems to be a lot of dissatisfaction behind the scenes about Racing Point and for the majority of the paddock it is now certain that their car is indeed a copy. Even Max Verstappen reacts fiercely when asked about his possible new competitor for the podium.
The question is whether Racing Point might be a new title contender with this concept and thus form a new hurdle towards the championship for Verstappen. “No, they will never be in a title fight", he says to GPblog.com. "Not compared to Mercedes, they’re behind them. So if you copy, you’ll always be behind.”