Mercedes launched its 2024 F1 car on February 14. Ever since then, its contentious front-wing design caught the attention of F1 tech experts. Turns out, it was more than just the experts pondering over the design’s legality. Some of the rival teams complained to the FIA, asking for a review. Although the ruling body has now deemed it compliant with the regulations, Toto Wolff has responded with an aggressive retort.
Bombarded with questions over the legality of the front wing during the first day of pre-season testing, the Mercedes boss (as quoted by Auto Motor und Sport) remarked, “Everything that comes to the car arises after an intensive exchange with the FIA. It’s not that you develop something new and then just screw it on the car.”
As per the design regulations, a front wing cannot have more than four elements. While the W15 features 4 elements, the topmost flap has an uneven structure. The nose of the car connects with the flap through a slender element called ‘legality wire’. The said wire further connects with the rest of the flap which has a conventional design.
Rival teams will be keeping a close eye on Mercedes’ new front wing in Bahrain.
The FIA has deemed it legal, but it will still be controversial, as it could be considered “against the spirit of the regulations.”
Rivals wait to see the performance of the W15.
[@formu1a__uno] pic.twitter.com/ywykgD2Y5K
— Mercedes-AMG F1 News (@MercedesNewsUK) February 20, 2024
The reason rivals (rumored to be Ferrari, Red Bull, Aston Martin, and Alpine) demanded a review was because of two other regulations. One of those calls for every close element to be visible when viewed from below.
The other requires the rearmost point of the rearmost closed section to not be visible when viewed from above. The FIA gave its assent to the design on Monday, in response to the appeal from other teams.
That gave Mercedes the go-ahead to feature the front wing at the pre-season testing in Bahrain that started earlier on Tuesday. The advantages of the ingenious front-wing design, however, are yet to reveal themselves.
Are Toto Wolff and Mercedes heading for another failed season?
The first day of testing was an uneventful one for Mercedes. While George Russell managed to put in an impressive run of laps (121 in total), the pace left a lot to be desired. Russell, who was only 12th fastest, had most rivals ahead of him, with Max Verstappen leading him with a whopping 2.765-second gap.
While most teams are using these days to test different settings, tires, and fuel capacities, Mercedes engineers will desperately hope to gain a good couple of seconds when running at full pace. The season, otherwise, will turn out to be a sour farewell to Lewis Hamilton.
DAY ONE CLASSIFICATION
Verstappen leads the way, chased by Norris, Sainz and Ricciardo #F1Testing #F1 pic.twitter.com/CIQYiaOULM
— Formula 1 (@F1) February 21, 2024
The seven-time champion did not feature on the track on the first day of testing. However, he was present in the garage, reading data from Russell’s runs. Hamilton will have his turn on the W15 on the second day. Sergio Perez, who gave the first day a miss, as well, is set to return behind the wheel too.
Two more days of testing will take place before all the attention shifts towards the first race weekend of the season. The first race weekend will take place in Bahrain from February 29 to March 2.
