Christian Horner’s coy remark when asked if he “believes” in Mercedes’ upgrades

Next weekend’s F1 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix should see Lewis Hamilton and George Russell benefit from developments to their sub-par W14.

Horner’s Red Bull have won all five grands prix of 2023 so far and he commented upon their biggest rivals supposedly clicking into gear at Imola.

"I think it’s a massively tall order to win every race," the Red Bull team principal told the Financial Times.

"You have 23 races, street circuits, the weather will probably turn up at Silverstone, reliability, strategy, an element of luck… 

“To win 23 races is unimaginable.

"We have won the first five and that is by far the best start we have had to a season. 

“We want to keep that rolling for as long as we can and take one race at a time.

"There are always things that can change. We are heading back into the European season and there are big upgrades coming. 

“If you believe Mercedes, they have a completely new car…”

Horner was asked if he believes Mercedes. 

Smiling coyly, he replied: "I am not going to answer that question.

“Ferrari have upgrades coming and the competition will start to come through. 

“It is very easy to get carried away but there are developments in the pipeline with other teams that will only converge the grid."

Max Verstappen is aiming to win a third consecutive F1 championship with his stiffest competition so far being his teammate Sergio Perez.

Managing that difficult relationship has been Horner’s biggest headache yet.

But that could change in the coming weeks if the upgrades that Mercedes will bring to Italy have a significant impact.