FORMULA 1 RACING

F1-sesongen 2023 åpnet med et smell i Bahrain. Selvom the Silver Arrows ikke kom hjem med det resultatet de ønsket er de duket for en fullpakket sesong med 23 løp som byr på mange muligheter for et heroisk comeback.

F1 2023 is go; and it was high drama from turn one. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff described race day at 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix as “one of the worst days in racing” for the Silver Arrows, with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell finishing 5th and 7th.

Forged in the fire of the challenging 2022 season, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team’s new car - the 2023 Mercedes-AMG F1 W14 E PERFORMANCE - is back in black with a range of new changes from aero to weight saving. At the wheel will be Sir Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, who line up for their second season together, supported by Mick Schumacher in his role as third driver.

“Last year was difficult but it came with lots of learnings,” said Team Principal & CEO of the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, Toto Wolff. “I hope 2023 will be proof that we have understood how to unravel the problems and improve the package of the car.”

“W13 certainly had performance which we never were able to unlock and put all its downforce on the ground. Our car performed very well at the end of the season. However, we still had the famous bouncing at some circuits and the car never gave the drivers good feedback, which limited them in being able to really push. We have tried to keep all the goodness of the W13 and address its weaknesses,”

“We were overweight last year. This year we have tried to figure out where we can squeeze out every single gram. So now, history repeats itself. You will see that the car has some raw carbon bits, along with some that are painted matte black. Of course, when we changed the livery in 2020 the main driving factor was to support the diversity and equality causes which are always close to our heart. The colour black became part of our DNA at that point, so we are pleased to return to it,”

Technical Director, Mike Elliott further explains the W14’s detail: “Last year, once we had figured out what we needed to do, it took a huge amount of work to get ourselves moving forward. We have done all the things that we wanted to do with the W13 last year but weren’t able to because of resource constraints or because our focus was elsewhere fixing other issues,” 

“Areas targeted include reducing overall weight, giving the drivers a more consistent car balance across the speed range, and better matching the aerodynamic characteristics to the demands of the aero regulations. This is borne out in areas such as a significantly lighter chassis, revised front suspension geometry, cooling system adjustments and a refined aerodynamic concept based on last year’s learning. With this generation of cars, the performance is all in the detail. When you look at the W14, you will see the DNA of the W13 but also a lot of evolution and detail improvement,”

Seven time Formula One World Champion Sir Lewis Hamilton added: “I have been a part of this team for over a decade and the efforts of everyone never cease to amaze me. I find it inspiring how diligently and passionately each person approaches their work. “To see the evolution of the car and the changes that have been made is fascinating.  We’ve redesigned, optimised, and innovated so many parts of the car and that is impressive. And I love the new livery! It says, ‘we mean business’.”

George Russell added: “I have been incredibly impressed with how the Team developed the car throughout last season. We have been building momentum throughout 2022 and we’re excited to see how that has progressed over the winter. It’s been a long winter and there’s plenty of anticipation to see if the W14 lives up to our expectations. I’m excited and, while there’s a lot of talk at this point in the season, we now need to see how we perform when the car takes to the track.”

While Hamilton and Russell begin their second season together as team-mates there is a change in Reserve Driver for 2023. Mick Schumacher joins the team after two years spent as a race driver at the Haas F1 Team. The 23-year-old German said: “I’ve always felt very close to Mercedes. I am very happy to be a part of the Team and I know how important my role will be in aiding the development of the W14. I am committed to giving it my all to contribute to our performance in this competitive environment.”

Check out the full launch here: https://www.youtube.com/live/N__abV1TqBY?feature=share 

Nye baner, nye biler og en av de lengste sesongene i F1-historien. 2022 FIA Formel 1-verdensmesterskapet er satt til å bli en absolutt rekordsesong.