Mercedes breaks with tradition and will not launch its F1 2025 at Silverstone
Mercedes has announced that it will not be launching its new 2025 F1 single-seater, at a traditional event in Silverstone.

The new W16, driven by George Russell and rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, will take its first laps during a filming day at the Bahrain International Circuit on February 25. Pre-season testing will take place at the same circuit from February 26 to 28.
According to the current sporting regulations, teams can cover up to 200 km during promotional events, allowing George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli to share up to 36 laps of the Sakhir circuit.
No launch at Silverstone
Until now, Mercedes generally unveiled its new cars at Silverstone, with a launch early in the morning followed by a filming day. This tradition dates back to 2017, with the exception of the W12 in 2021.
At the time, the team director, Toto Wolff, had joked: « It always rains at Silverstone, so we decided we no longer wanted to stay in the freezing rain! We will do the filming day on the Tuesday after the Bahrain tests. This will provide more representative and probably better images than those obtained at Silverstone. »
This year, a late launch will allow Mercedes to continue the development of its single-seater until the last moment. Four seasons after the introduction of technical regulations on ground effect, initial problems are less likely to disrupt the only pre-season test.
However, the new Mercedes livery will be unveiled on February 18 at the O2 Arena in London, during the official launch of the F1 season, which will mark the 75th anniversary of the world championship. All team liveries will remain under embargo until this event.
Ferrari has planned an online presentation on February 19, while Aston Martin is expected to take a similar approach. For its part, Williams will unveil its new FW47 on Valentine’s Day, with a unique and customized livery.
Some teams might wait until the start of pre-season testing on February 26 in Bahrain to unveil their cars.
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