Watch out the rest of the pack, it sounds like Mercedes are making good strides with engine developments for the 2022 Formula 1 season.

The 2022 campaign sees a host of technical regulations being introduced in a bid to improve the racing up and down the field, with a big focus on aerodynamic changes in particular.

Indeed, the engine and power unit make up is going to largely remain the same until the middle of this decade but that does not mean that teams are resting on their laurels with their set-ups and, instead, they're looking to extract every last unit of horsepower they can for the new campaign.

Mercedes, of course, have had one of the best engines for the duration of the current turbo-hybrid era but in 2021 we did see a few weaknesses creeping in and they had to take engine penalties at times to put in a new power unit to make up for a power loss compared to the Honda in the back of the Red Bull cars.

Certainly, it was a little strange to see the Silver Arrows under such pressure as they've not had that before but it sounds as though they are going to be strong again in 2022, which may concern their competitors who naturally want to try and beat them.

For the new season, a new E10 fuel is being introduced into Formula 1 which will see 10% of its mix coming from renewable sources.

There had been suggestions that this would cause a slight power reduction compared to the engines in 2021 but Motorsport Italy reports that the Silver Arrows feel as though they have already made up the 20 bhp deficit caused by said switch, with a new turbocharger set-up in their W13 power unit.

The report states the turbo is “capable of enhancing the qualities of the six-cylinder and hybrid recharging, allowing more extreme strategies,” which is naturally an exciting sounding development if you are of a Mercedes persuasion.

Of course, this is all conjecture until testing and then the first race in Bahrain but Mercedes remain the team to beat after an eighth Constructors' crown was sealed back in December, even if Lewis Hamilton did miss out on the Drivers' title.

And, that in mind, you can bet your bottom dollar that the Silver Arrows will consider themselves as the team to catch once more, and with that they'll be working harder than ever to try and maintain the status quo in 2022.