George Russell, British driver of the Mercedes AMG F1 team, attributed the team’s difficulties with the 2024 Formula 1 car to an excessive attempt to solve the problems faced in the previous season. At the Miami Grand Prix, Mercedes had a disappointing performance, failing to score any points in the Sprint race and qualifying in the fourth row. Russell, who outperformed his teammate Lewis Hamilton, finished eight tenths of a second behind pole position Max Verstappen, with both Ferrari and McLaren cars also ahead of the Mercedes cars. Despite this, Russell believes that Mercedes must acknowledge their current position and hopes to be more competitive in the next race. He expressed confidence that the team will progress and reduce the gap to their rivals.
Mercedes unveiled a much-needed upgrade package over the weekend, which team boss Toto Wolff had previously highlighted as a major breakthrough in his comments in China. However, George Russell expressed doubts about the effectiveness of the changes, stating that the stopwatch does not lie. He acknowledged that the team’s pursuit of a new car concept had led them too far in the opposite direction. Russell explained that the changes made since last year may have overcompensated for previous problems, resulting in new limitations for the team. He emphasized the need for a quick improvement and admitted that implementing the solutions will take time.
Despite the challenges, Russell remains hopeful that Mercedes has a clear understanding of how to address the current issues. He believes that data analysis will provide insights into their current position, as it did last year. However, he also acknowledged that the team may have gone to extremes in their efforts to correct past problems and now needs to find a more balanced approach. Russell highlighted the lengthy process involved in developing and implementing improvements, which includes wind tunnel testing, design, and construction. He emphasized that progress cannot be expected overnight, especially when starting from a disadvantaged position. Russell concluded by stating that, while everyone wants immediate progress, the reality of Formula 1 is that it takes time to achieve significant results.
