Mercedes are working on upgrades that could be applied in time for the next round of the season in Miami, according to Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin. Mercedes have endured a tough start to F1's rules reset, falling well behind early pace-setters Ferrari and Red Bull amid fundamental issues with their 2022 contender, spearheaded by extreme porpoising. The phenomenon, brought on by the sport's return to ground effect aerodynamics, is forcing Mercedes to run their car at a higher ride height to counter the dramatic effects, costing valuable performance. At the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton suffered so much that team boss Toto Wolff labelled the W13 "undriveable", with the floor of Russell's car at one stage sustaining damage .
Mercedes "moving forward" despite trouble at Imola
While Russell battled his way to fourth at Imola via a strong start to the race, Hamilton was mired in the midfield and had to settle for 13th, prompting an apology from Wolff . Shovlin admits the task ahead of Mercedes is a significant one, but that the team feel they are making solid progress behind the scenes. "We know where we are at the moment and we know that gap that we need to make up to get where we want to be," he said in Mercedes' post-Imola debrief video. "As a team, we are very focused on the engineering challenge that this is, and it is a very interesting engineering challenge. "Problems that are new to us, that we need to get on top of and understand, and there is an enormous amount of energy back here [at the factory] going into that, but day by day we are moving forward, and we are learning more about it."
Mercedes searching for "a clue" with Miami updates
Shovlin is hoping that the first updates - based on the team's early-season findings - will arrive in time for Miami, giving them the chance to assess whether their hard work is paying off. "Hopefully soon, maybe as soon as Miami, we can start to bring some parts to the car," he added, with the race scheduled for the weekend of 6-8 May. "[These] will hopefully give us an indication on whether we are moving in the right direction. "We are not expecting to solve this overnight, but if we can get a clue that we are going in the right direction, that we really got to the bottom of what is going on, then we will be quite pleased that we are moving on the right path."
Most read
