Schumacher sees problems Mercedes: 'Is not efficient enough'

According to Ralf Schumacher, Mercedes has lost all the advantage it had with the engine in recent years. The team has taken a huge step backwards since 2021 and cannot fight for wins in 2022.

Schumacher, in his column on the German branch of Sky Sport a tough time for Mercedes. Until recently, the German team could always count on its powerful engine in the hybrid era, but now that the other teams are on roughly equal footing, this is no longer the case.

Mercedes not competing in 2022

Mercedes' problems could be due to several things, Schumacher believes. For example, the switch to E10 fuel may be one of the reasons that the engine is not as strong at the German manufacturer. Schumacher says Mercedes cannot go to the limit because of the new fuel.

According to Schumacher, the car itself is also not good enough. "It is not efficient enough in terms of drag and downforce," says the brother of Michael Schumacher. These kinds of problems the team could previously compensate for with the powerful engine. "Personally, I don't have much hope anymore that Mercedes will still be in the battle for the championship."

Low point for Mercedes

In Saudi Arabia, Mercedes experienced a new low. Lewis Hamilton did not get further than sixteenth place in Saturday's qualifying session. In the end, the seven-time champion still managed to finish tenth on Sunday and scored a point with it. George Russell finished fifth in the race, but could not join the cars of Red Bull Racing and Ferrari.