2022 has been a year to forget for Mercedes. After winning the constructors’ championship and missing out on the drivers’ championship on the final lap in 2021, Formula 1 fans anticipated an equally intense title charge from the Silver Arrows this year.
This however was not the case, with the German side being significantly off the pace from the start, struggling with porpoising in the early parts of the season.
The lowest point for the team came in Imola, when Max Verstappen once again overtook his old adversary Lewis Hamilton, but this time with the aid of blue flags.
Technical director for the team, Mike Elliot, says they are well underway working on next year’s car, claiming hard work and understanding are the only way to put things right.
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“Obviously, we’re well into next year’s car at the moment,” he said.
“I think we’ve got to work diligently, work hard over the winter, but hopefully we can get ourselves back into position where we’re fighting right at the front,” he continued.
The performance of the Silver Arrows’ W13 has improved over the course of the season, with the team unlucky to have to got onto the top step on at least one occasion.
Whilst some at races, the driver duo of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell qualify well, they often fall short in the race, or vice versa.
“I think there are races this year [where] we’ve been very close.
“In fact, our race performance has been pretty decent at a number of races,” he claimed.
This was especially evident in Silverstone with it seeming written in the stars that Hamilton would claim top spot, only for Carlos Sainz to hold on for his maiden win.
Elliot claims his team have identified what needs to change for them to be competitive next year, and believes it is not beyond the realms of reality.
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“I think what we’ve been trying to do is to understand that and I do think we understand that now -we know what we need to put right.
“You’re then going to say, how much performance do you need to find?
“I’m obviously not going to give you a number, because that would be giving a lot away, but I think it’s within the bounds of what’s possible to find.”