Mercedes car stands out to F1 champion Jenson Button over Red Bull and Ferrari

20 February 2023 , 22:54

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Jenson Button wants to see a tense and tight F1 title fight this year (Image: Sky Sports)

Jenson Button singled out the new Mercedes car as the "most beautiful" on the 2023 Formula 1 grid – and hopes it will be competitive enough to join the title fight.

All 10 teams have now shown off their latest liveries with the start of the new season less than two weeks away. But some have been more revealing than others, giving fans a peek at a representative design of their car, while others have been more withholding.

Red Bull are an example of a team keen to keep its cards close to its chest, showing off a new livery on their 2022 car. Fans will have to wait until at least testing later this week to see a more representative example of their latest car, and even then they may decide to sandbag in terms of its performance.

Regardless of what they all look like, 2009 drivers' champion Button just wants as many as possible to be involved in the title race. He told Sky Sports : "The Red Bull is the only one we haven't seen realistically, it was obviously least year's car, but Red Bull always come out with a good car. I think they'll be competitive.

"The Ferrari looks nice. It looks like they've worked on areas where they were weak and they've taken some risks in other areas. The car looks good.

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"It's strange about Mercedes because the car, I would say it's beautiful. It's the most beautiful car, I would say the Mercedes. They might possibly be changing the sidepods. Surprised they didn't do that over the winter rather than into the season, but they obviously believe in the style they have for the first few races.

Lewis Hamilton will hope to have a more competitive car this year (LAT Images/Mercedes F1 Team)

"I look forward to that fight at the front – we all hope for that three manufacturers at the front fighting for the championship, don't we? Three teams, and I think we will get that at some point this season."

If Mercedes cannot compete again this year, Button believes Lewis Hamilton might decide to call time on his F1 career. He added: "It's a reason why a lot of people retire, they are not in a winning car anymore. That's why I left.

"You can deal with the pressure you put yourself under and the calendar, if you are in a winning car. When you are not, you are like 'I've had enough, I want to get out'. Mercedes have given him a winning car for so many years. Last year obviously didn't but the car did win a race last year, so you would say at the end of the year they were strong."

Daniel Moxon