George Russell has recently denied that Mercedes F1 is considering a return to the more traditional sidepods, seen on the very first version of the Mercedes W13 during the single-seater presentation and then at Barcelona testing.
This denial is confirmed by his boss, Toto Wolff, who gave the reasons why he has confidence in the ability of his team to transform the W13 into a more competitive machine.
“I’ve been in this situation before in life, and you just have to be humble regarding it. When I said last year with the new regulations, how things were set up, that we might have a different pecking order – that’s exactly what happened.”
“The midfield is very, very compressed and we’re just not fast enough, period. There are so many areas where we know we can improve, and others where we don’t understand the car yet. .
“We just have to focus on ourselves and improve the performance. The team is still the same one that has won many championships even if some (Red Bull, editor’s note) believe they have weakened us.”
Wolff adds that Mercedes’ own simulations suggest their car should be a second a lap faster than it currently shows, and said he was confident the team would eventually make that step forward.
“Yes, I believe in it. We know that the porpoising (the rebounds) costs us more than Ferrari. But what is the other solution? Go back, go back several months, then put this car back on the track ? I don’t think it’s doable.”
“It wouldn’t move us forward in terms of performance compared to others – it’s a relative game. So at this stage we have no choice but to understand. Whatever the outcome, of this understanding we can change or tweak the car.”