For much of the last two years, Mercedes has spoken with optimism about the future. After conceding that the ‘zeropod’ philosophy was a dead-end last year, the Silver Arrows re-appointed James Allison to the role of technical director. The hope was that 2024 could spark a resurgence.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, the W15 has fallen short of expectations. Ironically, the German constructor’s 2024 challenger is arguably further behind Red Bull than its predecessor. Considering the optimism heading into this season, such a scenario is difficult to swallow.<\/p>\n
In Japan, Toto Wolff and his personnel made a series of changes.<\/a> Having studied the cause of their lack of performance in Australia, the W15 was fitted with a different floor for last weekend’s GP. Mercedes actually reverted to their initial specification from testing, a decision motivated by the car’s lack of consistency to start the year.<\/p>\n In some ways, the Silver Arrows managed to establish a more reliable platform. Mercedes did not experience the significant swings in performance from Friday to Saturday that characterised the first three races of 2024.<\/p>\n However, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell still lacked the machinery to fight at the front. In fact, the W15 solidified its position as the fourth-fastest team – perhaps even falling behind the upgraded Aston Martin.<\/p>\n Despite this result, team principal Toto Wolff sees reason for optimism:<\/p>\n “Overall, this weekend has been better than the final results suggest. We have lots to learn, and there is no relevant excuse we will use,” he explained in Suzuka.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n “We need to be quick at all circuits. <\/em>But from what we’ve seen here, we can say that the car is become quicker.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n “We will continue to work hard, and i am excited to head back to China in a few weeks.”<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n On paper, the Chinese GP could be a difficult event for Mercedes. The Shanghai International circuit should see Ferrari challenge Red Bull at the front, whilst Aston Martin’s AMR24 is likely to perform better at this layout.<\/p>\n