Team Mercedes has suffered a lot because of the zero-side pod concept over the last two years. Last year has been totally awful because of the terrible porpoising issue with W13. But this year, the Brackley team has been successful in reducing the bouncing and sliding problems. Despite that, it has not been able to build a championship-winning car. It has been so weird to see the Silver Arrows get so far behind their rivals, Red Bull. After all, the German team was winning every championship from 2014 to 2021.
Just a couple of years ago, Mercedes was still enjoying the hegemony on the grid. But everything started changing when Max Verstappen won the Driver’s title in 2021. On top of that, the cost cap era has not been favorable toward Mercedes. Mercedes also fears that it is going to be a winless season for them. Last year, despite the porpoising issues, the German team won at least in the Brazilian Grand Prix. But the Silver Arrows are still looking for redemption and their first win this season. It is still a dream for Toto Wolff’s team in 2023. That’s why Mercedes is planning to bring more upgrades to the W14 car.
Mercedes Planning To Bring More Upgrades To W14
Recently, in an interview, Rosie Wait, the head of Strategy of the German team, mentioned it still makes sense for them to push the W14 car with new upgrades. Wait noted that in the winter, Mercedes will work on the W15 car. However, until then, they have a lot to work on the current car that will help them understand and develop the 2024 car. Moreover, it will get the W14 car faster to compete with Ferrari and McLaren. The Singapore Grand Prix winners are closing in on Mercedes in the constructor’s championship.
Red Bull is already the confirmed title winner, but the second place is still up for grabs. Mercedes can still lose it to Ferrari. Due to the tough competition with Ferrari for P2 finish, there are more upgrades in the pipeline for Mercedes. Rosie Wait said that they will continue to bring new upgrades to the W14 car to secure second place finish. Moreover, Lewis Hamilton can still finish second in the Driver’s championship as he is only 33 points behind Sergio Perez of Red Bull.
The German Team Must Solve Their Issue With The Downforce
In 2023, the Brackley team constantly changed the car to see if it performed better. However, the German team had a very inconsistent season in terms of the car’s performance. The W14 car has not been performing well in low-downforce circuits. But it has been performing much better if the tracks have high downforce, like in Singapore, Spain, Canada, and England.
Due to the problem with downforce, Mercedes struggled with consistency this season. Anyway, they have been planning to change the fundamental design of the car for the 2024 season. Currently, they are focusing on building a car that can get them closer to their rivals, Red Bull. Clearly, Red Bull’s RB19 is the fastest car on the grid at present. After all, they have won 15 out of 16 races this season.
