A car that is closer to the ground and stiffer is putting George Russell in difficulty
The technical director of Mercedes has commented on his driver George Russell's mixed start to the season and provided some explanations for his difficulties in 2023.
Last year was a year of confirmation for George Russell. First victory, eight podiums, and a fourth place in the championship, ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton. The Kings’s Lynn native was indeed achieving an exceptional performance, as he became the third teammate of the seven-time world champion to beat him over the course of a season. Jenson Button did it twice (2009 and 2011) and Nico Rosberg did it once (2016). This season, Russell has only stepped on the podium once and has 50 fewer points than his elder at the halfway point.
If the 25-year-old Briton recently admitted to having missed opportunities in 2023, he also acknowledged having general difficulties with the W14. According to his technical director, Mike Elliott, these difficulties partly stem from the new rules introduced in Formula 1 last year. “I think these cars are difficult to drive, they are when they are close to the ground,” explained the 49-year-old aerodynamics specialist.
« Difficult to handle rigidity »
Furthermore, according to him, « It is difficult to find the right balance in turns and it is difficult to manage the stiffness of the cars ». As a reminder, last year, Formula 1 introduced new technical rules to bring the cars closer to the ground and utilize ground effect. The suspensions, too, underwent significant modifications, including reinforcement, which would make finding balance in turns difficult.
But Elliott believes that Russell is capable of getting the best out of his car fairly quickly. The driver himself still hopes to see Mercedes succeed in 2023. A task that seems quite difficult to achieve.
