“Mercedes is set to fight with Williams at the back of the grid”- FIA’s porposing solution is a huge headache for Mercedes’ title challenge

Janmeyjay Shukla | 17/06/2022
Also Read: When Lewis Hamilton’s car caught fire but he couldn’t stop it

FIA’s technical directive means that Mercedes will have to change their close to the ground setup to comply with the new regulations.

Formula One 2022 cars are completely new for this season and built after intense research and developments performed by the teams.

However, there is one problem that few teams are yet to find solutions even in the middle of the season. The issue of porpoising is still haunting a few of the teams especially Mercedes and McLaren.

The Silver Arrows have suffered the most due to this porpoising issue. Previously, on the straight streets of Baku, the car kept bouncing with Hamilton especially suffering the most.

Also Read: When Lewis Hamilton’s car caught fire but he couldn’t stop it

FIA’s solution to Mercedes and other teams porpoising problem

According to Sky Sports analyst and pit side expert Ted Kravitz, Mercedes’ W13 kept on bouncing due to the low setup. To gain maximum speed, the Mercedes cars were close to the ground and bounced due to the track being uneven.

Later, the Mercedes team principal urged FIA to make changes in the regulations favouring them. He stated: “We need to do something on the regulations because he [Hamilton] can’t move.”

The FIA introduced a technical directive advising the teams to tackle the porpoising issue. From this weekend in Canada, they will be monitoring cars with telemetry data.

Secondly, using mathematical Formula, the teams will be given a maximum tolerance for bouncing and hitting the ground. This is to ensure that the drivers are safe and do not injure themselves.

Changing the setup will reduce the W13’s speed

This is a huge concern for Mercedes. When the FIA provides the maximum tolerance measure, the German team is bound to change its setup.

Mercedes currently run the setup of low or near to the ground setup ensuring maximum straight-line speed. However, this comes with a repercussion of porpoising which both George Russell and Lewis Hamilton face.

In order to comply with FIA regulations, Mercedes would have to run with a higher-to-the-ground setup. This would for sure decrease the porpoising effect, but will also decrease the speed of the car.

Also Read: Charles Leclerc stars with David Beckham in glamorous short-film

Post Edited By: Samriddhi Jaiswal
Lewis Hamilton Mercedes Porpoising

About the author

Janmeyjay Shukla

Janmeyjay Shukla is an artist who contributes his expressions through words as an F1 writer and editor at The SportsRush. He is an F1 historian who has been watching the sport since he was a baby. Passed on from generation to generation, he has seen the prime of Michael Schumacher to the rise of Max Verstappen. A Mercedes fan from the days of the Brawn GP era, the sport runs in his blood. Besides Formula One, Janmeyjay is a Marketing Head and a musician who loves to sing and play Rock & Pop songs on guitar. His love for sports will never die as he is a loyal Liverpool Football Club fan as well!

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