Ralf Schumacher believes Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will have yet another difficult season in the 2024 Formula 1 season because he is “a bit unhappy” with Mercedes.
Schumacher was left with a bad taste in his mouth by the Silver Arrows’ performance in Bahrain during the lone preseason test.Mercedes revealed a fresh concept with the W15 and took off for the Middle East. Having no wins the previous season made the Brackley squad want to scrap their zero-pod plan.
Since 2011, Mercedes had not won a single Grand Prix throughout a Formula 1 season until last year.A zero-pod concept was first investigated by the Silver Arrows in 2022, and Russell at least won the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. However, they would lose their year after implementing the idea in 2023.
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On the third day of the Formula One Bahrain test, George Russell recorded Mercedes’ fastest lap.
The fact that Mercedes was without a winning season since before Hamilton’s arrival in 2013 also made Hamilton want to leave and sign with Ferrari. After 2024, the 39-year-old will move to Maranello. He activated a release clause in the contract, which Hamilton signed in August, allowing him to leave Mercedes.
Following their W15 test in Bahrain, Hamilton feels Mercedes has “a much better car” to start the season with. Additionally, he thinks the Silver Arrows have “done a terrific job” creating a whole new idea. In addition, the automobile is “far more pleasurable to drive” than the W14.
Russell, on the C4 Pirelli tires, recorded the quickest lap for Mercedes during the preseason test, clocking a time of 1:30.368. The third and last day of the test was when the 26-year-old reached his time. In the course of the test, the British driver did 189 laps overall, compared to Hamilton’s 172.
With the W15 for 2024, Mercedes debuted an intriguing front wing.
Mercedes’s sole goal on days one and two with Russell and Hamilton was to accumulate laps. After the first day, Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko said that the Silver Arrows were “definitely” concealing their true performance at Formula 1’s sole winter test.
However, Schumacher, a former Toyota, Williams, and Jordan driver, was “disappointed” by Mercedes in Bahrain. even if Mercedes’ vehicle for the 2024 Formula 1 season is deemed “surprising” by Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache. Wache thinks the front wing design of the W15 is “quite fascinating.”
Schumacher expressed his dissatisfaction with Mercedes to Sky Germany.”I get the impression that things will carry on from the previous year. That might also be the reason Lewis Hamilton stopped believing in it and heeded Fred Vasseur’s advice.
