Mercedes have a clever innovation which they will run on their 2021 challenger, team principal Toto Wolff has said in the run-up to the season-opener in Bahrain.
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The Silver Arrows struggled in pre-season testing and didn’t top either of the opening two practice sessions ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, but many in the paddock are nevertheless expecting a very close battle between Mercedes and Red Bull this campaign.
And, the German team seem to have another weapon in their armoury which they are yet to deploy.
“You haven’t even seen what we’re going to put on the car yet,” Wolff said in Bahrain.
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“Of course, there is room for innovation and that always made me happy. Every year we try to do something that is a little bit boxy.
“I’m not sure it makes a big difference in terms of the performance of the car. It’s beautiful if it works,” he added.
It’s not clear what kind of innovation Wolff was referring to, and he nor anyone else in the team has yet provided further details.
The Mercedes F1 Team is no stranger to innovation; their Dual-Axis Steering (DAS) system raised eyebrows when it was noticed by other teams and pundits at the start of the 2020 season in Austria.
The innovative system, which allowed Sir Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas to adjust the toe of the front wheels by pulling the steering wheel back or pushing it forward, was swiftly protested by Red Bull.
The FIA ultimately ruled that Mercedes should be allowed to use the system in 2020 but it would be outlawed from the following season onwards.
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