Mercedes’ 2023 car has been given a new nickname by ex-Formula 1 driver Martin Brundle, following last weekend’s British Grand Prix.
The British GP was another extremely challenging weekend for Mercedes, which at least ended in a rostrum for the side’s efforts.
Mercedes were absolutely nowhere throughout free practice at the Silverstone International Circuit, with both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell having ended the opening day outside the top 10.
There were genuine concerns following free practice that Hamilton and Russell would fail to reach Q3, given their one lap pace at Silverstone ahead of qualifying.
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However, their race pace looked very promising, something which has become a trend this season.
Thankfully for the British crowd and for the Brackley-based team, both Mercedes drivers did progress to Q3; however, neither could breach the top five.
Russell started in sixth with Hamilton in seventh, behind both McLaren drivers.
As expected, Russell and Hamilton both looked very strong in the race, with Russell having put Charles Leclerc under immense pressure early on for fourth.
The King’s Lynn-born driver went on to finish in fifth after losing out late on, following a Safety Car.
Russell pitted before a Safety Car was released in the closing stages of the race, something which allowed several drivers to complete their only pit-stop.
Hamilton was one of the drivers to pit when the Safety Car was released, something which saw him overtake several drivers, including Russell.
The seven-time World Champion emerged from the pits in third, where he went on to finish.
Third and fifth was a solid result for Mercedes given their struggles ahead of the race, with it keeping them second in the Constructors’ Championship.
Red Bull were once again just too quick for the Germans though, yet when talking to the media at Silverstone, Wolff stressed that “we have a good group of people, the best drivers, and we just have to give them a car that is more predictable and not the diva 2.0, and much more complicated than the first one.”
Should Mercedes do everything that Wolff has outlined, then the Austrian believes his side can defeat Red Bull.
Naming the W14 the “diva 2.0” certainly highlights how challenging things currently are for Russell and Hamilton, although Brundle thinks there is a better name for the team’s current car.
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Brundle believes the W14 should be named “knife edge” due to its questionable drivability, which has seen Mercedes at times be incredibly quick and incredibly slow at the same circuit.
“Mercedes keep polishing up their reluctant car – now apparently called Diva 2.0 – and from time to time it has shown some blistering race pace,” Brundle wrote in his Sky Sports F1 column.
“But ‘knife edge’ appears to be its resting place in terms of drivability.”