P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Mercedes has been trying to work through a rear suspension upgrade which proved more troublesome than first hoped.
Mercedes’ Andrew Shovlin has revealed that the rear suspension upgrade was utilized on-track before the test results were received, causing setbacks in performance.
Despite introducing a new design at Imola, Mercedes has seen a decline in performance during the European season, securing only one podium finish with George Russell in Hungary.
Kimi Antonelli’s performance was also affected by the challenging W16, prompting the removal of the problematic suspension for Monaco and Spain races, followed by its reintroduction in Canada, leading to a one-three finish.
Toto Wolff mentioned that the Imola upgrade might not be successful, as Shovlin elaborated on the team’s struggles with the components during testing and on-track performance.
Shovlin explained the timing issues with test results and the reintroduction of the suspension at the Montreal race weekend, highlighting the ongoing analysis of lab data to identify and learn from any potential issues.
While acknowledging the complexities of making suspension changes, Mercedes aims to extract valuable lessons from this experience to enhance their knowledge and development for future cars.
