2024-02-14 10:09:28
Whims of destiny. Mercedes has chosen Valentine’s Dayon Valentine’s Day, to present its new car W15the last one he will pilot Lewis Hamilton before staging his ‘divorce’ with the star’s brand to go to Ferrari in 2025.
In an austere event, but which at least allowed us to have the live presence of the team leader This is Wolff and the pilots, Lewis Hamilton y George Russellunlike the ‘express’ presentations and without guests of Aston Martin, Ferrari and McLarenthe Brackley team has shown a car destined to surpass the second place of last year’s constructors and in the best of cases, to fight for victories and the title in 2024.
Toto Wolff explained that “it has been a very hard winter in which our staff has worked hard to try to make a competitive car. We are convinced of achieving it, although it will be very important to see its performance on the track and with respect to our rivals in the tests. next week in Bahrain.”
Hamilton has acknowledged that this will be a “very emotional” season for him and has thanked the team. “It has been a real privilege to work with this group of people in the factory and on the circuits. Since I arrived in 2013, they have always supported me and treated me fantastically,” he said.
“A new way”
Regarding the brand new W15, which means a “new direction” for the Brackley technicians, Hamilton and also Wolff have stressed that “the learning of the last two years has helped us find our direction.” And for Mercedes, after winning eight world titles for constructors and seven for drivers in the hybrid era of F1, the last two seasons have been a true ‘way of the cross’.
The car, designed under the leadership of James Allison, “completely changes the layout of the chassis, the weight distribution and the air flow, literally almost every component, because I think only then will we have a chance,” says Wolff. “We could also make mistakes, anything is possible,” he warns.
Hamilton wants to return to where he left off in 2021, when he fought for the World Cup with Verstappen until the last corner of the Abu Dhabi GP, after an unforgettable battle throughout the season. And Russell, who faces his third season at Mercedes, hopes to vindicate himself as the team’s leader. In 2022 he surpassed Hamilton, but last year he was no match for him.
On an aesthetic level, the decoration of the 2024 car has changed significantly compared to its predecessor and silver once again gains prominence in the front view, although the black color is still very present. The new car will debut on the track this Wednesday at Silverstone with a brief 15-kilometre shakedown, but the star team reserves the 200-kilometre filming day for February 20 in Bahrain, the eve of the pre-season tests. .
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