Mercedes have received a lot of criticism for their porpoising outcries after the FIA issued a technical directive to counter the bouncing effects concerning F1 drivers. However, the reigning world champion thinks that Lewis Hamilton and Marcedes tried to force the FIA to make a regulation change as they suffered the worst effects of porpoising. The F1 governing body introduced a regulation change ahead of Candian Grand Prix to eliminate/reduce the effects of porpoising in the newly designed cars in 2022.
As a result of violent bouncing, Lewis Hamilton and Geroge Russell have failed to win a single race this season, failing to match the pace of frontrunners, Red Bull and Ferrari. However, despite the bouncing concerns, Hamilton clinched his second podium of the year in Montreal.
Meanwhile, Briton and Toto Wolff claimed that porpoising was a serious safety concern and the whole grid suffered from it. The effects of bouncing were clearly visible in Baku when other drivers complained about the issue. Hamilton had to go through cryotherapy and acupuncture just to compete in Montreal after a back-hurting run in Baku.
But, the frontrunners Ferrari and Red Bull have spoken against the technical directive. The two outfits feel that the rule change will benefit Mercedes. So, naturally, there was a huge argument between Wolff, Horner, and Binotto during the principal team meeting in Montreal. Red Bull’s Verstappen also disagreed with the regulation change as he discussed the issue on the Pardon My Take podcast.
Verstappen & Leclerc Criticize A Regulation Change Benefitting Mercedes
Targetting Mercedes, the Dutchman said that many teams on the straight have experienced porpoising on the straight, especially the beautiful grey car. Max Verstappen revealed that with new regulations in place, cars generate downforce from the floor. Thus, the downforce sucks to the floor, and stalling under the floor leads to the up and down motion as it keeps sucking and stalling.
The Red Bull driver further shared that some teams have the issue more under control than others. Verstappen pointed out that when that kind of aggressive bouncing happens at 300kph, it could be quite painful for the drivers. He stated that especially one team had been moaning about the issue a lot. And this resulted in the FIA investigating and understanding the problem to limit the bouncing.
However, despite other drivers like Pierre Gasly speaking out about porpoising, the technical directive has not been received well by Ferrari. They believe the change will only benefit Mercedes. Charles Leclerc also said that he did disagree with the FIA’s intervention. The Monegasque felt that it was the team’s responsibility to give the drivers a car that was okay to drive.
Leclerc claimed that he did not have any particular problems with bouncing until now. The 24-year-old admitted that the car is stiffer than last year. However, he did not think the newly designed cars were undrivable or very hard on him. Charles concluded, “So on our side, we found solutions to how to make it better.”