F1 teams go the extra mile to keep spies at bay

F1 teams go to greath lengths to hide their secrets, and a red flag from Mercedes is the latest example

In the world of Formula 1, spies are always watching. As such, teams go to great lengths to try and hide critical parts from the prying eyes of their competitors as much as possible.

A red flag during the second day of pre-season testing served as the latest reminder.

George Russell’s W14, Mercedes’ challenger for the 2023 F1 season, suffered a hydraulic failure during the second session of the day. The issue forced Russell to pull the W14 over and stop along the left side of the track at Bahrain, and wait for help to arrive.

When the Mercedes engineers arrived, the first thing they did was not get to work on the car.

It was to cover the car, so curious eyes could not get a look at what was underneath the W14 when it was lifted off the track:

Mercedes engineers were able to get the W14 covered and off the track, keeping curious eyes at bay. The team confirmed that the W14 indeed had a hydraulic failure, likely ending their day early:

On Thursday, it was a Mercedes driver who could not help taking a peek at the RB19, Red Bull’s challenger for the 2023 season. Lewis Hamilton and former teammate Valtteri Bottas, now with Alfa Romeo, took an up-close look at the Red Bull car before taking to the track:

Drivers, and even teams, have been fined for violations under the sporting rules. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was fined during the 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix for touching the rear wing of Hamilton’s Mercedes after qualifying.

When ever millisecond matters, hiding how you shave off every bit of time is a reason to keep those prying eyes at bay.