During the last race weekend at Montmelò, Mercedes kindly gave us the opportunity to chat with deputy team principal Bradley Lord. During the meeting, we obviously talked about the moment experienced by George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the two drivers, who on Saturday (the day of the interview, here the part reserved for the drivers) seemed the only ones capable of fighting for the 2026 World Championship, but also for the power unit.
Together with Toto Wolff's deputy, we gave a wide-ranging speech both on the regulatory changes that will affect F1 over the next two years, and on the ADUO's controls and the voices that have been influencing the FIA's verdict in recent days. Below we report the second and final part of the interview.
Opinion on the 2027 and 2028 regulations
Marco Sassara (Formula1.it): "What do you think of the changes announced by the FIA to the 2027 and 2028 regulations?"
Bradley Lord (Mercedes deputy team principal): "I think... I think we've said a number of times, we would have, as Mercedes, we would have preferred... we would have preferred to do the full step for 2027 (go directly to the ICE/electric ratio at 60/40, ed.) and do one change and then have that. But, in the discussions, it was clear that wasn't possible for every power unit manufacturer. And so I think what we have found is a good compromise that will fine-tune the... the racing and the balance between the combustion power and the electrical power in a way that will retain the strengths of the racing we have seen so far. And from our point of view, not because we've been winning, but watching the races, looking at the audience numbers, looking at the viewing figures, we have seen six exciting Grands Prix so far. So, but what we have found is a good compromise in dialogue with the FIA and with the other manufacturers to make the... take the sport in the right direction to address some of the criticisms but retain the strong points of these rules".
Marco Sassara (Formula1.it): "So do you think Formula 1 could have pushed the internal combustion engine a little’ further more?"
Bradley Lord (Mercedes deputy team principal): "Well, what it will... it will mean that the drivers are able to push more flat out in qualifying, which has been the big point of criticism around these rules. And we will start to see speed profiles on the straights that are more like what we have... we were used to with the previous power units, rather than a peak speed halfway down the straight and then speed reductions. And so those have been the points that people have responded to and reacted to negatively. And we hope that these changes will address that, in combination with the aerodynamic changes for 2027, but retain the close wheel-to-wheel racing, the close battles and fights that we have seen so far this year".
Bradley Lord dismisses ADUO rumors: “We're all at the limit”
Marco Sassara (Formula1.it): “Regarding ADUO, what are your thoughts on Red Bull's review request?”
Bradley Lord (Mercedes deputy team principal): "I think the um the FIA have worked hard and analyzed the data very carefully to reach the conclusions that they have. Um they are technical conclusions based on the parameters that are in the rules to measure um the performance of the different combustion engines. It is understandable that if you are the manufacturer that is declared as the reference, that but you're not... you don't have the package that has the fastest lap time, that maybe you feel there is a discrepancy between the measurement and the award of ADUO and the overall performance in the standings. But I think for all of us, all of the PU manufacturers, we trust the FIA, we trust the work they have done and the measurements they have made and um we will see if the... you know, we will... we will then let their process follow its course. So yeah, we can understand why Red Bull might feel surprised. But we also trust in the process of the FIA".
Marco Sassara (Formula1.it): “Some rumors claim that Mercedes and even Ferrari may have used fewer engines in the early races to gain an ADUO advantage. How do you respond to this?”
Bradley Lord (Mercedes deputy team principal): "The 2026 project has been such an enormous technical challenge for everybody that the idea that people are doing anything other than the very best they can do is, for me, not a credible one. We are all trying to bring the most performance and the most reliability to the track at every race, and we are all on the limit of being able to do that. We have seen a number of reliability problems in the Mercedes power unit, not just for us, but for our, you know, partner teams and customer teams as well. And the technical challenge is enormous. So, I don't think anybody has the margin or the capacity to be doing anything other than the very best they can do. And that's also what Formula One should be: it should be about everyone pushing to the limit, pushing to their maximum and delivering their maximum to the track. And we must always keep that spirit of competition and pushing the limits alive".
Marco Sassara (Formula1.it): “The last question. Regarding ADUO, have you already planned an additional engine development that can be introduced within a few weeks?"
Bradley Lord (Mercedes deputy team principal): "So, development in Formula One is something that happens behind closed doors and in the factories, and as Mercedes, we have never pre-announced developments, and we're not going to start doing that now. So we wouldn't reveal our development plans in public at any point. We simply follow the path we want to follow, and when we have performance to bring, we bring performance to the track. But we don't pre-declare or pre-announce. So our development plans are something that will be kept internal for our team, and then we will see how things unfold across the rest of the season. So, unfortunately, that's one I can't... I can't reveal or give you an answer to".
We thank Bradley Lord (Mercedes deputy team principal) for the friendliness and helpfulness shown in the interview, as well as the Mercedes staff for their support in its implementation. Partial reproduction of this exclusive interview is possible after citing the author (Marco Sassara) and the Formula1.it source with a link to the original content.
Read also in italian language: Esclusiva - Mercedes e Ferrari con meno motore nelle prime gare? Risponde Bradley Lord
Foto: Mercedes
Read also: FIA wants to change the engines, but Ferrari is holding back
Read also: Antonelli’s father exclusively: «Kimi was born in a garage. The secret? Normality»
