Mercedes have admitted that they are "desperate" to get to the first pre-season test to see if their simulation work has been correct. With a wave of new technical regulations being introduced into F1 in 2022, there has been an added element of uncertainty for the teams in terms of their preparations for the campaign ahead. As such, Mercedes have done as much simulation work as possible to try to predict how the car will behave, and they are expecting some key differences which will affect the experience for the driver. "The 2022 car is very, very different," Hywel Thomas, the Managing Director of Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains, explained in the third part of the team's 'Road to 2022' video explainer series. "We know the aerodynamics are different, and from all the things that we've been told and all the work we've done with the team here at Brackley, we believe that the car will be doing slightly different things, and the requests from the driver will be different as they go through the corners than they were in previous years. "We've got simulations, we've done all our calculations, and we've modified the engine and the way that the engine drives in order for us to be ready, and we'll be able to react to when the driver puts the power on, perhaps in a slightly different way, perhaps at a slightly different time."
What happens if the simulations aren't correct at testing?
Thomas says that the team are very keen to see if their simulations prove accurate when the first pre-season test gets underway in Barcelona on 23-25 February, with a second test following on 10-12 March in Bahrain. Whilst they hope to have got it right, Thomas has also outlined the approach that Mercedes will take if testing does not go as expected. "Of course, we're absolutely desperate to get to the first track test so we can see if those simulations are correct," he explained. "Hopefully they will be. If not, we'll be ready to adjust the PU [power unit] as necessary to make sure the driver gets exactly what they want when they asked for it." Thomas admits that the range of new regulations being introduced have posed a "huge challenge" for everybody involved, but that the Silver Arrows are "super excited" to take this on, adding: "We are really looking forward to the start of the season." Mercedes will launch their new car, the W13, on 18 February.
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