Toto Wolff has said that Mercedes will only be tweaking their W12 over the course of this season, with no plans for any further updates despite their championship battle with Red Bull.
The sweeping regulation changes, coupled with the newly introduced budget cap, have meant that teams have to balance updating the current car against development of the new car, and Wolff reckons there won't be any significant changes to the W12 any more.
"We are obviously planning on churning along and trying to bring tweaks to the car, but we are flat out on 2022," Wolff told Sky Sports F1.
"There will be tiny tweaks that will be coming. But it's more, I think, understanding the concept of this year's car where we are looking for laptime gain."
This admission could be a bluff, or an admission that could spur Red Bull on to continue their development throughout 2021.
Asked whether Red Bull could become favourites for the title if Mercedes don't develop the car further, Wolff hinted at the team's confidence in the car.
"It could well be but we are confident that we can fight for it."
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