Mercedes’ struggles in the ground-effect era have persisted in the 2024 season, as their W15 challenger has failed to deliver any impressive results thus far.
Toto Wolff (via IMAGO)
Mercedes’ start to the 2024 season has been plagued by difficulties caused by the underwhelming W15 challenger. The team, based in Brackley, currently finds itself far behind the competition in fourth place. In an attempt to improve the pace of their challenger, the team plans to introduce updates throughout the season. Toto Wolff, team principal, has expressed his frustration with yet another unsuccessful chassis developed during the ongoing ground-effect era.
Mercedes’ struggles were evident at the Grand Prix, where they faced a dire situation as they were eliminated from the Q1 qualifying session. The team was “experimenting” with the chassis, which resulted in these issues.
Wolff acknowledged that Mercedes’ challengers during the ground-effect era have proven to be difficult to handle. He recalled George Russell’s description of the W15 as the “most complicated” car he had driven during the Chinese weekend.
Reflecting on the Grand Prix, Wolff noted that the challenger performed at its best. However, the team failed to achieve impressive results over the weekend and encountered problems once again. While Mercedes’ chassis demonstrated competitiveness at high speeds in Suzuka, it struggled in the corners.
The unexpected issues with the challenger have caused the team to lose valuable points early in the season. As a result, Wolff had to accept that the performance of the challenger varied greatly. It changed from “day to night.”
Despite facing evident challenges during the second year of the new regulations, Mercedes managed a second-place finish in the 2023 season. However, the 2024 campaign has been extremely disappointing for the team, given their current position. Reflecting on their success in the previous season, Wolff pointed out that Ferrari missed several opportunities and McLaren was never a true competitor to Mercedes.
The conditions in 2023 made it seem like Mercedes was the main rival to the highly dominant Red Bull team. However, now that rival teams have significantly improved and are closing in on Milton Keynes, Mercedes has received a reality check. Therefore, Wolff stated that Brackley has come to realize their true position this season, thanks to the disappointing W15 challenger.
Despite the challenges, Mercedes will continue to fight on the track and strive for a stronger finish to the season. With 19 races remaining in the 2024 season, Brackley will analyze their declining form and aim to rediscover their winning ways.