F1's 'big four' teams' real 2019 performance levels revealed
In the first of two pieces, our technical expert assesses how F1's big three - and the other full works team that should have been hunting them down - fared during 2019, including a detailed breakdown of the numbers behind their performances
We all hoped the changes to the technical regulations of the front wings would put a cat among the pigeons and mix up the running order. After the first pre-season test, everyone thought that might have happened, but we were knocked back to reality when Mercedes upped its game for the second test. Worse was to follow in the first race of the season. Mercedes dominated and the writing was on the wall.
Mercedes did win both world championships with races to spare, but there were hurdles to overcome. Ferrari fought back in the second half of the season, but it was too little too late. It also fired up Mercedes, which dug deep and ended the season as it began with a dominant performance in Abu Dhabi.
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