Mercedes to run latest W17 upgrade on both cars in Austin
Mercedes will run its latest upgrade package on both Kimi Antonelli's and George Russell's cars at this weekend's United States Grand Prix in Austin. The new aero package had a problematic debut in Malaysia; in Singapore only one car ran it while the other stayed on the older specification for comparison, and this is the conclusion the team has drawn. Friday practice will show whether the W17, including the new front wing, has actually moved forward.
A poor Malaysian debut, then a back-to-back test in Singapore
According to Sky Sports, the new aero package had a problematic debut in Malaysia. In Singapore only Antonelli used the upgrades, while Russell, who had a grid penalty for the main race, reverted to the pre-Malaysia version so the team could compare the two on track. Sky Sports reported that Antonelli started the sprint weekend behind Russell but improved as the event went on and finished third in the race.
Toto Wolff said in a team statement: "Malaysia and Singapore were difficult weekends for us and we have worked hard to understand where we fell short." He added: "We will run our latest update package on both cars as we continue to develop the car."
The front wing ran for one hour of practice
PlanetF1 and GPFans report that the new front wing Antonelli ran for an hour in Singapore FP1 was never planned for racing. Deputy team principal Bradley Lord explained that Mercedes had only one example, rushed through production, and that the risk of a pit-lane start if it were damaged was too high to use it in qualifying, the sprint or the race.
Deputy technical director Simone Resta pointed out that FP1 on a sprint weekend is one hour with two sets of tyres, and run in daytime unlike the night-time qualifying and race, and described the test as an investment in the future. Some observers read the reversion as a sign of further upgrade problems; PlanetF1 says that was not the case.
More downforce, but a narrow operating window
In the team's account relayed by PlanetF1, Singapore data suggests the upgraded package generates more downforce. The challenge is delivering that downforce across the whole car, as the W17 has a narrow operating window. Lord said the team hopes to use the higher peak performance more effectively in Austin.
GPFans says the aim is to close the gap to Red Bull and Max Verstappen, who scored 58 points across the Sepang and Singapore rounds.
What is at stake in both championships
The standings quoted by GPFans put Mercedes on 578 points in the constructors' championship, ahead of Ferrari on 444, McLaren on 339 and Red Bull on 332. In the drivers' table Antonelli has 340, Russell 238, Lewis Hamilton 229 and Verstappen 221. Sky Sports reports that Mercedes lead Ferrari by 134 points and could secure the constructors' title as early as next week's Mexico City Grand Prix. Antonelli would clinch his first drivers' title in Austin if he wins, Russell fails to finish in the top eight and Hamilton is not in the top four. Six rounds remain.
Friday's FP1 and FP2 will give the first read on how the new package behaves. Everything above rests on team comments and media reports; actual performance can only be confirmed on track.