Max Verstappen attacks Mercedes as FIA steps to solve the porpoising issues; the new directive irks the 2021 world champion.
The 2022 season saw Mercedes lacking pace against Ferrari and Mercedes due to the porpoising. The concept used on W13 is considered to be world-class when in the wind tunnel. However, it isn’t optimising its capabilities on track.
Moreover, the porpoising issue is now more than a performative issue. The excessive bouncing is now a physical hazard, as Lewis Hamilton was spotted with a sore back after the race in Baku.
Though he is not the only one, Daniel Ricciardo also had physical problems, and Pierre Gasly also claims to be scared about his spinal discs. After several complaints, the FIA released the new directives to solve porpoising issues.
However, Max Verstappen isn’t happy with the interference by the governing body. He feels that porpoising can be solved by the teams individually, and believes if a team is facing problems with porpoising, it’s their fault.
“I think it’s a bit disappointing that again there is a rule change mid-season, I would say,” Verstappen told RACER. “If you raise your car then you won’t have these issues, but you lose performance,” he added.
“But if you can’t design the car properly for that then that’s your fault, it’s not the regs fault. For me, that is a bit of a shame.”
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Max Verstappen understands differences in tracks but is no fan of mid-season changes
Verstappen’s team is the rare one on the field not to have porpoising issues. Thus he believes that teams can alter the changes, and have a normal drive instead of bringing in FIA to solve isolated issues.
“Of course, every track is different, too, but I think it’s a bit of a shame to change it mid-season and clearly teams have shown you can drive normally, or at least with a lot fewer issues than some other teams,” he maintained.
Nevertheless, the directive by FIA can be beneficial for Red Bull. In case of excessive bouncing, both Mercedes and Ferrari can be forced to increase the ride height, which would definitely affect their pace.
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