Russell draws hope from changes at Mercedes: 'Won't give away too much'

09:52, 22 Apr 2023
7 Comments

Mercedes has so far failed to make the step it envisaged after its disappointing 2022 Formula 1 season, but George Russell says there is light on the horizon. He sees his team working hard on "big changes" that should ensure better results.

After an extremely dominant period in F1, Mercedes completely missed the mark in 2022. The German team was so convinced of its much-discussed zero side pod concept that it decided to largely stick to it in 2023 as well. However, after disappointing results in the opening race, team boss Toto Wolff admitted that the current concept was not working.

Meanwhile, the team is working hard to make the necessary changes to the W14. Russell, who realises all too well that he and teammate Lewis Hamilton are currently unable to fight for victories, hopes this will help Mercedes find its way back to the top.

Russell sees changes coming at Mercedes

"We are here to win, we’re here to fight for victories and for the championship, and clearly we’re not in a position to do that at the moment," Russell admitted in conversation with Formula1.com. "But big changes are incoming... Naturally you can’t get things brought that quickly to the car, but I think in due course, we’ll see some big changes and hopefully the lap times represent that."

The Mercedes driver himself is also doing his part by testing updates in the simulator, but would not say much about the expected improvements. "We are working really hard at the moment with these changes. I won’t give too much away, and we need to make sure they work as expected," explained the 25-year-old Briton.

At the Australian Grand Prix, Mercedes was in considerably better shape than in the first two races of the year, but a potential podium turned into a DNF for Russell. "As we have said a number of times, we’re probably finding more gains in the past two or three weeks than we found over the whole winter by clearly developing in the wrong window – so it’s definitely heading in the right direction," the Mercedes driver said.

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7 Comments
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VeganWarrior 22 April 2023 at 10:18+ 52458

"But big changes are incoming..... Can't wait to see the progress Mercedes has made.

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Mavric 22 April 2023 at 11:14+ 19032

Ye merc keep say big change coming now is lewis going be play acting with his back again this year to get more ruels change

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F1isBack 23 April 2023 at 01:44+ 31513

I recall how excited you were after the FIA succumbed to Mercedes' pleas to change the floor height regulations despite majority teams rightfully protesting. How did that pan out? Oh dear.

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Bret 22 April 2023 at 10:15+ 43891

Baku race will be interesting. With the sprint race farce, Teams will struggle with setup and we will see surprises in the final results. The next race will show us a clear picture of upgrades.

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VeganWarrior 22 April 2023 at 10:20+ 52458

@Bret, will Ferrari be bringing any upgrades for the next race, if not , do you have any idea why, and if yes, what upgrades will they be bringing. I ask as you're the Ferrari expert on the blog.

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Speed freak 22 April 2023 at 17:41+ 2333

What upgrades will mercedes, redbull Ferrari and Aston Martin bring. I ask because you're a formula one nou nothing at all.

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F1isBack 23 April 2023 at 01:40+ 31513

????