Shop
George Russell has claimed Mercedes is looking at its previous generation of cars for inspiration as it continues to find a pathway back to the front in Formula 1.
After opting for a change of developmental direction earlier this season, which resulted in the introduction of a major upgrade at the Monaco Grand Prix, for a short period it appeared as if Mercedes was back on track.
Russell and team-mate Lewis Hamilton finished third and second respectively in the following race in Spain as the updates came to the fore, with the seven-time F1 champion then claiming third in Canada and Britain.
Mercedes, however, has since failed to build on that period of productivity, whilst Russell has seen his season take a turn for the worse as he has finished seventh, fifth, sixth and sixth in the last four grands prix.
The recent Belgian Grand Prix was one Russell said he was “glad it’s over”, claiming it was “a really challenging weekend”.
On reflection, Russell said: “The weekend validated that probably the direction we’ve taken with the setup in recent races hasn’t been the right one.
“We suffered with a huge amount of bouncing. For a number of teams it was maybe not as severe as ourselves.
“But still, obviously, a bit of a shame to see that, as a sport, at the pinnacle, the majority of teams are still struggling with it. I hope it’s something that can be solved in the future.”
Russell is confident the issues can be dialled out for the races to come after the summer break, and that remarkably, the team’s past can provide a clue for a brighter future heading into 2024.
From 2014, following the introduction of the current power unit, Mercedes dominated F1, winning eight consecutive constructors’ titles and seven drivers’ championships.
“It (the bouncing issue) definitely can be tweaked,” said Russell. “We’re working really hard on the characteristics (of the car) for next year.
“We’re looking a lot at the previous generation of cars from the Mercedes glory years, using that as a bit of inspiration.
“They were clearly some of the best cars in history, so that’s given us some pointers of where we need to try and aim for.”
For Russell, the 12 races over the first period of the season can be broken down into “two halves” from his perspective, particularly linked to the introduction of the upgrade.
Declaring himself “definitely ready” for the break, he said: “I’d say the first six races were really strong, the last six races not so much. I have a few ideas as to why that is.
“There have been quite a lot of missed opportunities this season for various reasons, some from mistakes of my own, and some like the failure in Australia which cost me a lot of points.
“Nevertheless, if you’re not fighting for P1 in the drivers’ championship, you just want to maximise things.
“We’re in a good place in the teams’ championship, that looks pretty secure for now, but we’re just focused on wanting to win a race this year.
“I’m sure we’re going to be strong over the second half of the season, we’ve got some little things coming after the break, and I’m confident we can secure being the second-best team and try to close that gap further.”
