Here's the thing about this season: as Motorsport.com reports, Mercedes went five whole months without touching the W17 machine and still managed to build a massive 160-point advantage over Ferrari in the constructors' championship. Six wins out of ten races will do that for you. So when the squad finally arrived at Sepang with a serious, sweeping upgrade package for the Bahrain Grand Prix, the paddock stopped to watch. This is the very first proper development push the team has applied to the car since the Canadian Grand Prix way back in May, and it touches practically every aerodynamic surface on the beast.
The update consists of seven distinct components spread across the floor, sidepods, rear bodywork, and rear suspension. It is a substantial set of parts that Mercedes is banking on to carry them through the remainder of the campaign. The most striking visual shifts happen right at the floor and the sidepods. The leading edge has been thoroughly reworked alongside the corner, floor board, and body to clean up pressure distribution and keep air separation at the absolute minimum. Simply put, the engineers want clean air streaming toward the rear, which also features new winglets and reprofiled suspension fairings.
Hopefully this new upgrade with a few characteristic changes are also going to play into my favour a bit more. So, bring it on,
That rear bodywork has been severely slimmed down, too, making way for a larger side ramp designed to shove air clean over the back of the floor. There are also fresh, McLaren-esque sidepods equipped with rather large gills to handle heat management around the scorching Sepang circuit. Speaking as a guest on Sky Sports F1, Bernie Collins laid out the danger for the rest of the grid: "A very ominous set of upgrades on the Mercedes. It all starts on the front floor area. The floor fences and floor body has been changed, to lead airflow to the rear. It's all to do with generation of more downforce, more load, more efficiently. This Mercedes is the one to beat."
Team principal Toto Wolff is keeping his feet on the ground while hoping the new parts can finally unlock pole position pace this weekend. "We are bringing an update package this weekend, and that is an important step for us," Wolff explained. "At the more representative circuits in recent races, we have not been where we want to be. Monza and Baku presented unique challenges, but on the more conventional tracks we have not been in the fight for pole position. We know that and we are working hard to change it." He added that while the new parts should be a step forward, the stopwatch remains the ultimate judge.
On the driver side, Russell is eager to see how the revisions feel on track. "Hopefully this new upgrade with a few characteristic changes are also going to play into my favour a bit more. So, bring it on," he said. Even with the team having already won 11 of 15 races so far, rivals are pushing hard with developments of their own, meaning the Brackley and Brixworth outfit cannot afford to stand still. An ADUO upgrade is still waiting in the wings for later in the year, but for now, everyone's eyes are glued to the timing screens at Sepang.
