The W13 is not as good a going game on the track as its predecessor.
George Russell himself might be surprised at what kind of car Mercedes is offering him this season. AOP
Mercedes ’dominance in formula number one would seem to have come to an end, at least for now.
The silver arrows have been clearly underrepresented compared to Ferrari and Red Bull for the pace of the entire early season.
The biggest problem with the W13 is the bounce, the “fashion phenomenon” of this season. With the new rules, cars seem to stall when the car’s ground clearance varies with airflows.
The problem is exacerbated by straight lines when the car is absorbed as the speed increases for a moment closer to the surface of the track. When the stall starts, the car goes up, only to lower again after a while.
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have received rickshaws in both Sakhir and Jeddah.
There is no simple solution to the problem, but improving aerodynamic properties could be some kind of cure.
In Saudi Arabia, Mersu is experimenting with a rear wing that is completely different in profile from a week ago.
On the high-speed street track in Jeddah, the W13 has a low-resistance wing for flywheels. At least in theory, it brings better bend speed to the straight lines, but also reduces downforce, which should bring relief to the bounce problem.
Stable boss Toto Wolff already joked after Bahrain to take a chainsaw to reduce the car’s air resistance. However, this wing has been designed by Mersu’s engineers.
Mersu needs some solution. Hamilton and Russell did not fit in the top ten in the final free practice.