Horner: Mercedes’ struggles with F1 engine reliability “very extraordinary”

Mercedes published on Friday sooner than the United States Mammoth Prix that Valtteri Bottas would be taking a third grid penalty in four races after having a brand new engine suited for his car, because the crew manages an ongoing area. 

Mercedes buyer teams Aston Martin and Williams possess furthermore been pressured into engine penalties for this weekend, leaving Sebastian Vettel and George Russell at the abet of the grid. Bottas will fall 5 locations abet from his qualifying tell.

Mercedes F1 chief Toto Wolff mentioned on Friday that the realm modified into once “no longer trivial” and had left the producer “striking on for dear life in supplying all potentialities” because it tries to adore the challenge. 

Any engine reliability setbacks might per chance well per chance per chance possess a explicit influence on Lewis Hamilton, who finds himself trailing Crimson Bull’s Max Verstappen by accurate six aspects at the prime of the drivers’ championship with six races final.

Horner mentioned that reliability “might per chance well per chance per chance play a key feature” in the championship, adding: “Reliability might per chance well per chance per chance be decisive. You’ve got to be at the finish of the flee.”

Bottas took a fresh vitality unit in each Italy and Russia, meaning the further engine in Austin will trip away him with pool of on hand factors heading into the closing stages of the season.

Horner felt Mercedes modified into once “weighing up that risk versus reward” of penalties versus added efficiency by having more engines to quilt the final races, but mentioned it modified into once “very extraordinary for Mercedes” to be struggling with reliability.

“They’ve clearly been the benchmark of reliability the final six or seven years,” Horner mentioned.

“So it’s extraordinary that they are on this enlighten.”

Verstappen moved onto a brand new vitality unit at the Russian Mammoth Prix which Crimson Bull hoped would analysis him to the finish of the season without any more penalties.

“We’re hoping to win it by to the finish of the twelve months with what we possess now, but that’s our assumption,” Horner mentioned.

“I mediate the eventualities can alternate rather mercurial, as that you can analysis, so that you know, that you can by no formula divulge by no formula.

“Nonetheless we feel that by taking a penalty in Sochi, it got us abet real into an more cost-effective tell.”

2021 has seen Crimson Bull enter the F1 title war for the dear time since its final championship have interaction eight years previously, aided in phase by engine companion Honda’s gains for this season.

To boot to Verstappen’s maintain title aspirations, Crimson Bull is furthermore in quest of the constructors’ championship, trailing Mercedes by 36 aspects.

“I mediate we are pushing them exhausting this twelve months,” Horner mentioned.

“We’ve truly thrown everything at this season and at moderately great every flee we’ve managed to present them a exhausting time.

“So while you place in thoughts how dominant they’ve been the final seven years and that this car is largely a elevate-over of ultimate twelve months’s car, which modified into once arguably their most dominant car, it’s testimony to the [Red Bull] crew.

“They’ve got ourselves into this tell to be disturbing them with six races to head.”