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If the first day of F1 pre-season testing is any indication, Mercedes is back on track
The 2022 Formula 1 season proved rather challenging for Mercedes. In the first season under new aerodynamic regulations, the defending Constructors’ Champions struggled to get the “physics” right with their car, the W13. Mercedes and their drivers, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, struggled with the impact of “porpoising,” an aerodynamic effect that had that car bouncing on the track, and the two drivers bouncing around in the cockpit.
But if the first day of pre-season testing is any indication, the team looks to have solve that issue for good ahead of the 2023 campaign.
Both Russell and Hamilton took to the track on the first day of testing at Bahrain International Circuit, and their 2023 challenger, the W14, looked much smoother, aside from a few bumpy portions of the track that all the teams highlighted after the first day of action. Russell was up first for the Silver Arrows, and completed 69 laps during the morning session, posting what would be the ninth-fastest time of the day.
Following the morning session, Team Principal Toto Wolff addressed the media, and indicated that the team saw “no bouncing” over Russell’s 69 laps. “It seems to be balanced in the right way,” said Wolff. “There’s no bouncing, which is good news, apart from that big bump at the end of the straight.”
This is notable, because Mercedes’ struggles with porpoising were apparent during testing last year, which Wolff referenced as well, saying that the team “knew they were in trouble” at that point. “The car was just bouncing around and we really weren’t able to drive it correctly. So that is very different. I think we have a solid base now to work from and try to optimise the car, which we haven’t done yet. It’s really just finding out are there any areas that could be a real performance hindrance like last year with the bouncing.”
The team also placed additional sensors which you can see here, behind the steering wheel, to monitor this issue:
For his part, Russell called it a “clean” first day with plenty of “positives” in a statement released to the media, including SBNation:
“It was great to be back out in the car and get a first real experience of the W14. It is still too early to say where our performance levels are relative to the competition, but we had a clean day and learned a lot. There are plenty of positives to take away and we can focus on maximising the potential of the car in the coming days.”
Hamilton took over the driving for the afternoon session, and posted the sixth-best time of the day. While lap times are to be taken with a grain of salt, as each team is running a different program or programs during the testing, this is still a good sign for Mercedes.
Following the afternoon session, Mercedes Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin addressed the smoothness of the W14 during the first day in a statement released to the media, including SBNation:
“We’ve had a solid start to testing. The car has run faultlessly from start to finish and that has allowed us to complete an ambitious programme for day one. It always takes a few days to understand a new car, but we’ve got a reasonable handle on where we want to improve the balance. It was encouraging that it’s a much calmer, more stable platform to work with than the W13.”
Earlier this winter, Wolff talked about the team’s struggles on the Beyond the Grid podcast, highlighting how Mercedes eventually solved the balancing issues late in the season. However, the resolution came too late in the schedule for the Silver Arrows to pose a threat to Red Bull at the top of the table. Still, Wolff surmised at the time that their struggles in 2022 would be a problem for their competitors in the future. “The days we lose are the days our competitors will regret, because we learn the most.”
If Thursday was any indication, he might just be right.
