Mercedes will have to exercise patience until the upcoming Hungarian Grand Prix to determine whether their recently introduced upgraded front wing is delivering the desired performance enhancements.
The Brackley-based team unveiled the revised front wing at the British Grand Prix held at Silverstone.
However, their achievements were overshadowed by their customer team, McLaren, who secured impressive second and fourth-place finishes last weekend.
During Mercedes’ post-British GP debrief on YouTube, James Allison, Technical Director of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team, acknowledged that it is still too early to make a conclusive assessment of the new front wing’s impact.
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Allison emphasised that the primary goal of the upgrade is to enhance the team’s speed and overall performance.
“It’s a bit too early to tell,” Allison stated.
“The new front wing is, of course, designed to make us go faster. That’s why we do all our things.
“The specific characteristics of this new front wing that we are excited about is that it should improve the balance and performance of the car through the slower range of corners.”
Allison highlighted the unique challenge faced at Silverstone, where the circuit is renowned for its high-speed sections rather than a multitude of slower corners.
Despite this, Mercedes found reassurance in their competitiveness in the slower parts of the track, suggesting positive signs regarding the new front wing’s impact.
“That’s a tick in the box for this new front wing,” Allison noted.
“But I guess it will only be when we get to Hungary, which is a track made up almost entirely of slower stuff, that we’ll get to know for sure.
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“Early signs are promising; the new front wing seemed to do what we expected, and hopefully, it will bring us more advantages at tracks with a wider range of slow corners.”
The Hungarian Grand Prix, scheduled to take place next weekend, will provide Mercedes with a crucial opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of their upgraded front wing under conditions that better reflect its intended performance range.
The team will be hoping that the new front wing will unlock further gains and bolster their competitiveness, cracking Red Bull’s win streak.