Mercedes hints undisclosed potential of their 2023 F1 challenger: “We’re still hiding a little bit”

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has played down the team’s struggles on the second day of the F1 pre-season test and hinted there is more to come.

After a solid start to the 2023 F1 season on the first day of testing, the second day did not start as well for the German team as Lewis Hamilton struggled with the balance of the car in the morning.

In what appeared to be a slightly alarming situation, the Mercedes driver’s push lap on the C3 tire (the yellow-walled soft tire) was not that impressive. The Mercedes driver struggled to hook the sectors together and the car balance seemed all over the place.

Not only that, Hamilton ended up having a scruffy lap that was almost a second slower than the benchmark set by Ferrari.

Been a busy morning. 72 more laps for LH.

Over to George for the afternoon.

Been a busy morning. 72 more laps for LH. ????Over to George for the afternoon. ???? https://t.co/BlQniP92fA

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, however, does not seem too concerned about the situation. The Austrian revealed that the team was unable to nail the set up in the morning and that led to the struggle on the track. He told Sky Sports:

“The car is out of balance this morning and you can see that driving, we’re leaving black marks on accelerations. It’s hot and we just didn’t find the right setup for these conditions, which is part of the learning, I guess, with the new car.”

He added:

“They (Red Bull and Ferrari) are fast. No surprise there. Everybody is playing around with fuel loads and there’s a little bit of hiding on engine modes, so you can’t really judge (who is quickest). We’re still hiding a little bit.”

Mercedes looking at an unlikely challenge from Aston Martin?

The German team’s customer Aston Martin could be looking at pulling off an upset this season as the Silverstone-based team’s car is doing some impressive running on the first two days.

With Fernando Alonso behind the wheel, Aston Martin has easily looked like the best car from the midfield. It’s not only the lap time that the Spaniard has put together, but it’s also the kind of car characteristics that are on display that has caught everyone by surprise.

Working through our programme. 60 laps for LH this morning.

Working through our programme. 60 laps for LH this morning. ???? https://t.co/BbU62amMLW

According to multiple onlookers in the paddock, Aston Martin could be one of the three best cars on the track, with Red Bull and Ferrari being the other two. If that happens, we are looking at a start of the season where Mercedes might need to fend off Aston Martin in the early stages of the season.