Guenther Steiner believes he’s seen a clear sign Mercedes are gaming the FIA after Red Bull appeal

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Guenther Steiner has suspected that Mercedes are gaming the FIA after Red Bull’s latest appeal.

The Silver Arrows have so far dominated the proceedings in the 2026 Formula 1 season, having won six out of seven races.

Mercedes’ winning streak came to an end last weekend when Lewis Hamilton won the Barcelona Grand Prix ahead of George Russell and Lando Norris.

Despite Mercedes having the best overall package, they are set to be given ADUO after it was deemed that Red Bull have developed the best engine on the grid.

What are your thoughts on Mercedes being granted an engine upgrade through ADUO despite their 2026 dominance?

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Guenther Steiner claims Mercedes ‘could be’ sandbagging

While Red Bull continue to challenge the FIA’s decision, Steiner has spotted that Mercedes could be ‘sandbagging’ in order to be granted ADUO.

Speaking on the latest episode of The Red Flags podcast, the former Haas team boss said that if anyone were to play the game, it would be Toto Wolff. 

The 61-year-old also claimed that it is ‘not difficult’ to ‘reduce’ the power and, ultimately, it is ‘not forbidden’.

When asked if Mercedes are ‘sandbagging’, Steiner replied: “Could be if you look at it in Barcelona. It’s one of these things, and if somebody does it, it’s Toto. Guess what? Because he’s very smart, you know?

“It’s not difficult to do, because Red Bull asked for the FIA to keep on checking the data, the torque sensors; they measure it on the torque sensors on the output shaft and on the drive shaft, how much horsepower you’ve got.

“They got a lot of data from before, but obviously, Mercedes will make sure that they are as slow as they can get away with it. It’s one of those things he would do to keep an advantage. Why wouldn’t you do it if you can?

“You can; if you have got more power, it’s easy to reduce. It’s not forbidden to use less because you can say ‘I had to reduce the power because of reliability’.”

How badly will Toto Wolff regret Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari if Mercedes do not win the 2026 title?

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READ MORE: David Coulthard warns Mercedes’ reliability issues will only ‘get worse’ amid Ferrari battle

Toto Wolff insists there is ‘no political background’ amid ADUO controversy

Speaking during the Barcelona Grand Prix weekend, Wolff was asked to comment on Red Bull being found to have the best power unit on the grid. 

In response, the Austrian made it clear that there are ‘no favours’ and no ‘political background’ in play.

The Mercedes team boss alluded to the fact that the numbers were measured by the FIA.

As per Planet F1, Wolff explained: “In my opinion, when you speak to Nikolas [Tombazis], it’s data they have measured and collected.

“There is no political background, there is no favours, but it’s the outcome of their analysis of their torque sensors and the way it’s being done, and that is the result.

“We shall see how this pans out over the next time, because we must not forget this is not a frozen situation, but it’s going to be looked at every couple of races, and then being judged upon.”