George Russell, British driver for Mercedes AMG F1, is convinced that the team’s redesigned Formula 1 car for 2024 has addressed the underlying issues that have held them back in the past. In the previous season, Mercedes chose to stick with the ‘zeropod’ solution after seeing some promising results towards the end of the 2022 campaign. However, the revisions made to the design were not enough to make it a championship contender. As a result, Mercedes decided to make significant improvements to the car. Despite finishing in second place in the championship, the team was a staggering 451 points behind Red Bull and had their first winless season since 2011.
Speaking ahead of his fifth place finish in Bahrain, Russell acknowledged that the team’s confidence has improved compared to the same period last year. He mentioned that last year, morale was low due to the poor performance of the car, not only in terms of lap times, but also in terms of its overall characteristics. However, after much work over the winter, Russell feels that the car is now behaving as expected in terms of its drivability. The team’s focus now is on making the car faster.
Russell had positive feedback on the W15 car after pre-season testing and believes that Mercedes has made permanent corrections to its inherent flaws. He expressed confidence in being able to fully exploit the car’s potential, although he acknowledges that it is still early and there may be surprises in the upcoming races. However, Russell feels that the car now feels more like a true racing car.
“And I believe we can now be more assertive with the setup. The aerodynamics can be more incisive with the vehicle mapping and where they apply the downforce pressure.”
“Previously, it seemed like we were just applying temporary solutions to the underlying problem that the car has been facing over the past two years.
“However, for the first time in two years, we have evidence to support our claims. We have analyzed the data from W14 and W13 and we are much more confident that this is a more competitive racing car.
“But in the end, the only thing that matters is how fast it performs on the track. And at the moment, it is still not meeting our expectations.”
Mercedes Technical Director, James Allison, stated that the main goal of the revamped car was to eliminate the problematic characteristics of its challenging predecessor, the W14.
When asked about it, Russell mentioned that there is no indication that this will be a recurring issue in the future, pointing out that they have even toned down some bold design choices.
He highlighted the modified front suspension setup that Mercedes tested but will not use this weekend as an example of their ambitious advancements.
“I believe we have made additional adjustments to improve rear stability,” he continued. “We have also reconsidered some of the aggressive designs we implemented during the winter because, for this circuit, we found that we had a bit of excessive stability, resulting in excessive understeer in the corners.
“The great thing about this car is that we have the flexibility to adjust it, as we discussed with the suspension setup. It may not be ideal for Bahrain, but it may work better on other circuits.
“We have several components in this car that will give us the flexibility to adjust it. Next week, we will be in Jeddah, which is a completely different circuit – faster, with less downforce and more grip. We will see how the car performs there.
“But it seems we have done a commendable job in achieving our initial goal of having a much better foundation to build on. Now, let’s see where this takes us.”
Lewis Hamilton expressed his dissatisfaction with Mercedes’ lack of consideration for his opinion regarding the narrow structure of the sidepod during the early stages of the previous season. In response, Russell acknowledges that the team has made efforts to address some of his teammate’s concerns, specifically regarding the advanced position of the cockpit. When asked about his involvement in the design of the latest Mercedes car, Russell confirms that he gave his input, trusting the designers and aerodynamicists. He emphasizes that, as a driver, his role is to maximize the potential of the given package. Over the past two years, both Russell and Hamilton have consistently shared similar feedback, albeit expressed in slightly different ways. Hamilton focused on the seat position and rear instability, while Russell believes that these issues were resolved through a series of changes, rather than a single solution.
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