The Mercedes W15, heavily influenced by Lewis Hamilton’s feedback, aims for superior performance with a focus on enhanced cockpit design and aerodynamics.
George Russell acknowledged that a significant portion of Mercedes F1’s new W15 was designed with his teammate Lewis Hamilton’s preferences in mind.
The seven-time world champion had a list of requests for the W15, starting with a more rearward seating position in the cockpit, which will also serve as a foundation for the future W16. However, he won’t be driving the W16 as he’s moving to Ferrari at the season’s end.
So, will Mercedes F1’s new concept, steered by Hamilton, prove successful? George Russell certainly hopes so.
“We’ve taken the W15 out on the track, and it performed quite well right from the start, but ultimately, there’s only one thing that matters, and that’s lap time.”
“Lewis and I have put in a lot of effort to guide the team in the direction we want to go.”
“Obviously, with Lewis’s experience, a significant part of the car was designed according to his wishes – the car allows us to sit further back than last year – with Red Bull-style sidepods and a slightly different steering rack.”
“It’s great that the team listened to his feedback, now we have to see if it translates into good lap times.”
After admitting that many of the ideas were based on Hamilton’s feedback, Russell was asked if any of his own contributions had been incorporated.
“Of course,” he replied.
“I trust the designers and aerodynamicists. I’m not an aerodynamicist, and the driver’s job is to maximize what you’re given.”
“So, we’ve been very clear about the limitations we’ve faced over the last two years. Lewis and I have always had very similar feedback, in slightly different ways.”
“He talked a lot about the seating position, I talked about rear instability, and ultimately, we think we’ve solved that issue, perhaps with a number of changes we’ve made.”
“There’s never a silver bullet, but some of my ideas have been included in this W15.”
Hamilton’s W15 Design Influence. Hamilton’s W15 Design Influence
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