Mercedes seeks to be competitive again, challenging Red Bull for titles. Will it happen in 2024?
SILVERSTONE, England—Mercedes has dominated the Formula 1 scene for many seasons, winning races and titles with Lewis Hamilton at the wheel. Then, in December 2021, in Abu Dhabi, that changed. Since then, the team has had only one victory at the hands of Hamilton’s teammate, George Russell, in Brazil.
With the recent news of Hamilton moving on to Ferrari in 2025, on Friday, the Silver Arrows launched their final car with the Briton, the W 15. The hope is that both drivers can improve on the difficulties that have bothered them for the last couple of seasons.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff will not be surprised if their main rivals, Red Bull Racing, will continue dominating the early part of the season, but added that he expects his team to challenge as the season progresses.
Toto Wolff: Red Bull are the benchmark we aim to beat. But we will know soon enough how far ahead they are and the task in front of us. We hate losing, and that drives us.
The team’s alterations include a new push rod rear suspension, which was thought of as early as last summer by the recently signed Technical Director, James Allison, who feels that everything makes a difference in how the car is set up. “When we talk about a layout change, you’re generally talking about where the engine sits in the chassis, what geometry of rear suspension you’re going to have on the gearbox, and what changes you are going to make to the part that contains the driver,” Allison commented. “Those are all three things that are hypothetically doable in the middle of a year but come at such huge opportunity cost that you would never contemplate it. Nevertheless, you need to commit to them in the preceding summer. The off-season is about proving to yourself on your internal rigs and simulators that those pieces are what you hope they might be; that it looks like it will deliver on your hopes.”
Wolff also stated that the balance and how the car fits into the driver makes a big difference. “Performance is always at the forefront of our minds with the black livery last year,” Wolff continued. “Weight is a crucial factor in this current generation of cars. We knew that once we were in a position to do so, we would bring back the Mercedes silver to accompany the black that has become a pillar of our team identity. The livery truly reflects who we are as a team.”
Hopefully, the alterations will make a difference in how Mercedes performs in 2025. It has been three-plus years and two racing seasons since that fateful night in Abu Dhabi.
