Hamilton to run FAILED Mercedes upgrades at Dutch GP

Lewis Hamilton will drive a Mercedes at the Dutch Grand Prix featuring upgrades that have previously been scrapped by the team.

Mercedes claimed victory at the Belgian GP, firstly with George Russell before he was disqualified and his team-mate inherited the win, but the Brackley-based squad made major changes to their car throughout the weekend.

F1 HEADLINES: Ricciardo hit with DAMNING Red Bull verdict as Vettel goes 'undercover' to race

READ MORE: Hamilton and Newey Ferrari theory revealed ahead of 2025 switch

Mercedes have revealed that the updates they brought to the Belgian GP at Spa-Francorchamps, including a modified diffuser and a revised underfloor for the W15, will be given another opportunity to prove their worth in Zandvoort.

Despite failing to improve the car in Belgium, and not being used in the race, these updates are set to be tested again, as explained by Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes' trackside engineering director.

Mercedes' scrapped upgrades

Mercedes faced unexpected issues during the Belgian GP weekend. According to Shovlin, the problems were primarily related to the car's setup rather than the updates themselves.

"We encountered some issues that we believe were mainly due to the setup and not the updates," Shovlin stated in a Mercedes video update.

"We gave the drivers a car that tended to bounce in fast corners, which is not good for their confidence."

Additionally, the car struggled with stability on corner entry, making it challenging to brake late and carry speed through the turns.

Given these challenges, Mercedes decided to revert to the previous W15 specification used at Silverstone, where they had a successful race.

"Spa and Silverstone are quite similar in terms of corner speeds," Shovlin noted.

"It was the right decision to revert to a known specification."

READ MORE: McLaren announce HUGE contract extension for star

Despite the setbacks at Spa, Mercedes are confident in the potential of their updates. The team have been investigating the issues, and believe they have identified the root causes.

"We have been working on understanding exactly what went wrong," Shovlin continued.

"We are quite confident that we can reintroduce the Spa update at Zandvoort."

READ MORE: F1 winner delivers SCATHING Mercedes verdict after major FIA punishment

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

F1 legend Lewis Hamilton admits 'I shed a tear' as long wait for success finally ends

• 3 hours ago

F1 Sprint Qualifying Results Today: 2026 Canadian Grand Prix times and positions

• Yesterday 23:42

F1 News Today: Lewis Hamilton Ferrari contract extension details, Daniel Ricciardo back in pitlane

• Today 07:59

Lewis Hamilton ready to snub major Ferrari assistance after Canada display

• Today 01:07

Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari contract extension revealed by F1 insider

• Yesterday 21:07

Lewis Hamilton confirms Ferrari change and claims 'the goalpost is always moving'

• Yesterday 17:55