Not Lewis Hamilton’s fault for pushing the Mercedes new car harder; it’s our fault that the car was unable to provide the required grip- said Toto Wolff addressing the issues of the new W14 after the second day of the Bahrain Pre-Season Test.
After a smooth beginning in Silverstone on the car launch day, expectations were raised higher from team Mercedes. Fans were finally relieved that Mercedes’s latest F1 creation is porpoising-free. But who knew that something else would occur as another hurting issue that might once again let 2022 repeat this year? On the very first day, the first session of the Bahrain test run, Mercedes remained behind the benchmark set by Max Verstappen, as Russell finished 5th comparatively with the fastest lap.
On the second day, when Lewis Hamilton took the wheels in the morning, he faced ‘BALANCING ISSUES’ with W14. And in the afternoon session, when George Russell went to test his F1 challenger, he was stopped after completing 26 laps due to hydraulic failure that caused Red Flag.
Hamilton covered 72 laps and could finish it eighth fastest among the ten drivers driving their single seater at Sakhir. Unfortunately, just after the morning session, he had to submit the car in the garage to analyze the issue. He complained about the car being imbalanced. However, fortunately, the problem remained solvable.
Mercedes W14 Is Out Of Balance! But The Issue Got Resolved
As compared to what happened last year, getting the issue today that caused George Russell a red flag is somehow downplayed and good. In 2022 during the Bahrain International F1 pre-season test, Mercedes was confused. They faced problems from all parts; the most hurting one was the porpoising issue. And this is not the case with their comeback car. The W14 may not fill the gap between Red Bull and Mercedes from last year. But it is way better in comparison to its own last version.
The team principal Toto Wolff, who somehow was prepared to face such problems during the test runnings of the car, revealed the problems faced by the drivers. As mentioned by GP Fans, Wolff admitted, “The W14 is out of balance this morning. You can see that when it’s leaving black marks on acceleration.”
Wolff believes that the condition is now hot. And at this point, the team was unable to find the right setup. And he concludes this as a part of learning with the new car of Mercedes creation.
However, the boss justified the weak performance of the drivers during the second day of the pre-season test. He said, “It is not because the driver is overdriving the tyres of the W14 or pushing it harder.” But it was the car’s problem that failed to provide enough grip from the rear. And the best part about facing such a problem is that it gets transformed within the course of a day. But then it makes you realistic and prepared for another coming on the way.