Lewis Hamilton topped the timing sheets in Friday practice, finishing just 0.003 ahead of Norris. The 7-time Champion was the only Mercedes to get clean running, as Kimi Antonelli crashed in FP1 – which limited George Russell’s learnings. Still, Hamilton is satisfied with the W15’s initial performance.
Hamilton optimistic, but Mercedes must be vigilant
Mercedes work to optimise upgrades
Although Mercedes don’t have any major upgrades this weekend, they are still learning about the W15.
The current version of the Mercedes W15, which made its debut in Zandvoort, is largely unknown to the engineers in Brackley.
To be clear, the car produced the downforce that Mercedes anticipated in the wind tunnel.
Crucially, though, the Silver Arrows faced a similar issue to what Ferrari encountered earlier in the year.
With this generation of cars, downforce is not always positive for performance. It can inadvertently make the car more unpredictable for drivers, upsetting balance and costing lap time.
This is partly what prevented Mercedes from fighting for a podium in Zandvoort, as the team’s set-up failed to put the W15 in a good operating window.
Hamilton pleased with early signs
So far in Monza, there are encouraging signs this issue is being resolved. Lewis Hamilton was upbeat when speaking to the media:
“It’s been a good day, generally felt pretty good,” he said after FP2.
“It’s obviously the new tarmac that’s been a bit of a challenge and the kerbs, but the car felt good from the start.
“But going through FP1, there was a lot of graining. People were struggling with tyres, including us.
“And then we made some good changes over the break, and the car was feeling even better in the [second] session.
“Still some work to do on a few areas and a few things, and I think ultimately [in] the long run so we can go the [race] distance.
“That’s the challenge at the moment.”
As Hamilton went on to explain, an encouraging first day does not guarantee anything.
Incorrect set-up choices or changes to track conditions can quickly affect drivability. The Brackley-based team has experienced this pitfall at previous events this year.
With that said, Mercedes should avoid the sharp decline they suffered in Zandvoort.
To some extent, Kimi Antonelli’s crash compromised the team’s Friday. Mercedes initially planned to do comparison work between Hamilton and Antonelli, who were running different floor specifications.
The 18-year-old’s crash obviously limited this comparison work, although Toto Wolff’s team are still quietly optimistic.
Assuming they can maximise the W15’s usable downforce, they should be in contention this weekend.
Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull should all be very evenly matched. As such, the fine margins will differentiate the top eight positions in Monza.
