Motorsports
Whether the W13 is fast enough, Mercedes does not yet know
The problem of the porpoise is so persistent for the Mercedes F1 and causes so many problems when tuning the W13 that the champion has not even been able to determine how fast their car is this year.
The culmination of Lewis Hamilton’s exclusion from Q1 at the Saudi Arabian GP, caused by the inability of the team and the Brit to find a way to deal with the Mercedes W13’s bumps and get the tires to the ideal temperature level together , The F1 champion started the 2022 season with a different diameter than last year.
The Brackley team is forced to make huge compromises in building the W13 over the three days of competition to overcome the problem of jumps. And these compromises completely undermine the original philosophy of aerodynamic performance and tire management.
Despite her manual skills, the world champion of the last eight years cannot yet localize the problem and of course cannot say for sure if and when she will solve it. George Russell recently stated that this process could take until the end of the summer, which of course dampens the team’s hopes of retaining the F1 scepters.
The first priority of the Mercedes F1, as race engineer Andrew Sovlin has clarified, is to find a way to set the car up to face the porpoise and not upset its aerodynamic balance: “Because finally [το porpoising] prevents us from setting up the car properly to get the most out of it‘ said the Brit.
And he continued: “What we don’t know is if we assume that if we suddenly magically solve this problem, we will find ourselves in terms of performance. Is the car extremely fast or not? And it is very difficult to answer this question“.
As he said, the problem is more complicated than simply explaining the downward pressure exerted by lift on the straights until the car bottoms out and hits the tarmac. Many groups have addressed the problem by removing certain surfaces from the floor – but this option comes at a cost to the elevator’s overall performance. Mercedes is trying to find solutions without compromising on the W13’s aerodynamic performance in order to retain all the lift it originally predicted based on its design.
We need to solve the problem more efficiently
“If you can solve the problem of the jumps, you don’t have to be deprived of the lift‘ explained Sovlin.’Many groups, I think, exchange ideas with each other. We tried a notched bottom in the Bahrain tests, but we think what we found is the better solution overall. But so far we believe that what we did were simple fixes, we need to solve the problem more efficiently in order not to lose speed.
We need to better understand the problem. We’re taking some avenues that I think are going in the right direction, but it’s going to take us some time to get these new parts on the car. And we work very hard. We know very well that the other groups found solutions to this problem quicker than we did. And that’s not the data we normally work with“.
Andrew Sovlin concluded: “Some of the results we’re starting to see are interesting, but obviously we haven’t made a big enough move yet. The most dangerous thing now is to assume that we are beginning to understand the problem. We learn every day. I hope we can see the problem clearly in the relatively immediate future. We don’t look blindly, but we must act quickly.
We are under no illusions about our performance gap and in absolute terms it was bigger in Jeddah than in Bahrain. But we still have a lot to find, both for the qualifying tests and for the rounds of the race, when it comes to competing with the Ferrari and Red Bull cars. Our difference with the following teams gives us a little room to work and try to find solutions to improve the car’s performance“.
Source: sport 24
Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.
Former Formula 1 driver Riccardo Patrese believes 19-year-old Kimi Antonelli has the chance to compete for the championship in his second season.
With changes to the technical rules, the power order in the starting lineup for the 2026 season may change significantly. Patrese added that Antonelli has already shown that he can be among the names to compete for the championship:
“If Mercedes builds the best car under the new rules, Antonelli should focus on fighting Russell, as he has already shown he can do, and the rest will follow,” Patrese said.
“To the championship title!” he replied when asked how far the young Italian could go next year.
If Antonelli manages to win the championship next season, he will become the first driver to win the title in his second season since Lewis Hamilton in 2008.
Patrese recorded Antonelli’s first year:
“He made his debut, had to learn everything and coped well with the inevitable mistakes that come with lack of experience. I really enjoyed it, he showed pure class moments.”
Antonelli took three podium finishes in his debut season, including an impressive weekend at Interlagos and a spectacular comeback at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
A 2002 McLaren MP4-17A will go up for auction at RM Sotheby’s in Paris in 2026. Competing in 12 Grands Prix, the chassis was driven by Kimi Raikkonen and David Coulthard, achieving five podiums and one victory. The estimated price of the land is between 1,000,000 and 1,400,000 Euros.
The car was designed under the guidance of the legendary Adrian Newey. Although the MP4-17 initially showed inconsistent performance, it was later able to compete with the dominant Ferrari F2002 and regularly achieve podium finishes.
Chassis number 6 appeared in the middle of the 2002 season and was mainly used by Raikkonen, who replaced Mika Hakkinen in the team. The Finnish driver immediately finished third in the European Grand Prix, followed by second in France and third in the USA.
In 2003, the same chassis updated and driven by Coulthard won the season opener in Australia, marking the Scot’s 13th and final Formula One victory.
The car’s last race was at the 2003 Japanese Grand Prix, driven by Raikkonen, who finished second behind Rubens Barrichello, also of Ferrari. That season the championship was won by Michael Schumacher, who finished eighth in the race.
The car retains its original 2002 West livery and Räikkönen number 4 and is powered by a 3.0-litre Mercedes-Benz FO110 V10 engine. A complete restoration is required for reuse on the track.
Following its racing career, the car was stored at McLaren for 17 years and was purchased by its current owner in 2021. For fans of the early 2000s, this land is a unique investment and historical value.
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
About a year ago, Alpin decided to abandon Renault power plants and prefer Mercedes engines as of the 2026 season. The team came to the conclusion that its own engines had become a limiting factor in the fight for good results and sacrificed the status of the works team for the sake of customer cooperation with the German manufacturer, which was considered the favorite of the new technical regulations.
At the same time, the situation with Mercedes engines remains tense. Competitors are analyzing the possible use of thermal expansion to increase the compression ratio above the 16:1 limit in race conditions. While Honda, Ferrari and Audi may insist on breaches of the rules, Mercedes claims the rules were fully followed during static checks.
Despite the risks of the customer model, Enston is confident in the correctness of the choice. In 2026, the same engines will be used by McLaren, Williams and Mercedes factory teams, which will further intensify the competition. Of particular note is Williams, who finished the season under James Vowles in fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship, ahead of Alpine. This increases the pressure on the French team, but Pierre Gasly believes betting on Mercedes will allow them to compete at the front of the peloton from the start of Formula 1’s new era.
“We are opening a new chapter with Mercedes and given their CV and the number of championships, I am sure it will be a great adventure.”
“I’m not going to lie, I’m really excited about it. From what I hear, the Mercedes engine is in very good shape at the moment.”
“So I’m looking forward to the first test and the feeling that the Mercedes force is behind me. I have very high expectations for our team next year.”
“We made tactical sacrifices in 2025 so we can start 2026 on the right steps. I want to fight at the front of the peloton next season.”
“I don’t see any reason why we can’t be among the leaders at this point.”
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
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