Russell delivers early PREDICTION on Mercedes upgrades

Dan McCarthy
Friday 26 May 2023 11:15 - Updated: 11:15

George Russell says "things are pointing in the right direction" for Mercedes as they prepare to welcome a brand-new car to the streets of Monaco this weekend.

So far, 2023 has been a repeat of the Silver Arrows' struggles from 2022 with Toto Wolff's team still well off the pace set by Red Bull.

They have achieved only one podium finish between Lewis Hamilton and Russell with the former finishing second in Australia, and now they have responded with upgrades to their W14 car.

It has had a big makeover with the most notable change coming in the form of its sidepods so it resembles a more traditional-looking F1 car.

Although Russell is keen not to overplay the significance of the new car, the Norfolk racer is quietly confident the team are now looking upwards.

"It'll take a little bit of time but things are pointing in the right direction," he told the assembled press on Thursday. "We're coming here with an open mind and we'll see.

"It's nice to bring more performance to the car for sure."

READ MORE: First pictures of Mercedes F1 UPGRADES ‘leaked’ online ahead of Monaco GP

Russell echoes his boss on upgrades

The new, upgraded car was due to debut in Imola last but the race was sadly cancelled due to awful flooding in the region.

Since then, the decision was made to launch the upgrades in Monaco, despite it being a vastly different track to that of Imola.

Mercedes currently lie third in the championship ahead of Ferrari but behind Aston Martin, while all three teams are a long way adrift of Red Bull.

Always a pleasure racing in Monaco. 🇲🇨 pic.twitter.com/j3tyPTNLj4

— George Russell (@GeorgeRussell63) May 24, 2023

Team boss Toto Wolff said earlier his week not to expect miracles and Russell is thinking along the same lines, adding Monaco is not really the ideal circuit to judge the new car on.

"There's a lot of hype, and visually it's different," he said. "We won't be able to judge anything specifically on it this week. As Toto said earlier this week, there's never any silver bullets."

READ MORE: Toto Wolff: Net worth, wife and career profile of Mercedes giant