Mercedes uncover step needed for Red Bull-Ferrari fight
Mercedes uncover step needed for Red Bull-Ferrari fight
Mercedes director of trackside engineering Andrew Shovlin has revealed the step needed from the team to take the fight to Red Bull and Ferrari.
The Silver Arrows will arrive at the Circuit of the Americas for the United States Grand Prix with an aerodynamic upgrade as well as weight-saving measures to finish its development cycle for the season.
Neither Lewis Hamilton nor George Russell have secured a victory this year, with the season likely to draw a blank for the first time since the team went winless in 2011.
Addressing what the team is expecting from the final update, Shovlin explained: “It's our final step of aero development and that will hopefully give us a bit more performance.
"But importantly, with every step, we are learning more and more and that learning we can carry into next year.
"So that's part of it, also there are a few bits where we have taken some weight out of components that will hopefully get the car closer to the weight limit.
"It's very difficult for us to predict where we are going to be."
Mercedes hopefully of qualifying step
Mercedes' race pace throughout the season has been strong relative to Ferrari and Red Bull but due to qualifying difficulties, the chance to battle the top two teams has often gone begging as Hamilton and Russell fight in the midfield.
The qualifying pace has fluctuated across the season for the W13, with Russell taking pole in Hungary and Hamilton narrowly missing out in Singapore, only for other races to show a gulf in one-lap performance to the more consistent RB18 and F1-75.
"In Singapore, Lewis was awfully close to pole position, yet in Suzuka, both cars had a big gap to the front," added Shovlin.
"Now, our race pace has been reasonably strong, so, if we can make a step hopefully, we can get into the fight with the Ferraris and the Red Bulls but qualifying for us is the really difficult one to predict at the moment.
"But as I said a lot of it is about learning and we are certainly going to give it our best shot in the final four races.”
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Audi agree STAR driver contract as Mercedes driver tipped for new F1 seat THIS season - GPFans F1 Recap
- 2 hours ago
Ferrari show off new-look drivers following HUGE announcement
- 3 hours ago
McLaren leading fight for HUGE cash injection
- Yesterday 21:57
Newey set to announce STUNNING Red Bull departure
- Yesterday 17:57
Newey Red Bull exit wish CONFIRMED as F1 guru's reasons revealed
- Yesterday 20:57
F1 legend reveals 'FLOOD' of death threats after controversial decision
- Yesterday 19:57
Related news
Mercedes star tipped to replace struggling driver THIS season
Hamilton car camera captures Verstappen's TRUE feelings toward F1 rival
Marko reveals Vettel requirements for stunning F1 comeback
Fierce Hamilton F1 rival raises timing issue for Ferrari move
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860