Mercedes Puts Rumours to Rest With Bold Claim About W14 Upgrades

Mercedes has responded to rumours of a potential backup F1 car for 2023 by clarifying that their upgrades will not copy rival designs.

Despite keeping their distinctive ‘zero sidepod’ concept on the new W14 for the 2023 season, team principal Toto Wolff has suggested that changes may still be made to that area as the season progresses.

In preparation for the new campaign, Mercedes is planning to roll out a significant upgrade package several races into the season. Speculation had arisen that the team might be developing an alternative sidepod concept similar to those used by Red Bull and Ferrari.

However, Mercedes' technical director, Mike Elliott, has denied these rumours and emphasised that the W14's modified bodywork will be unique to the team and will not resemble designs used by others.

Elliott explained to Sky Sports F1 pundit, Ted Kravitz:

“There’s bodywork coming and it will look different.

“It won’t look like someone else’s [car], it will look like an evolution of ours. That’s on its way.”

Kravitz quizzed Elliott on whether the design will be similar to the Red Bull RB19. Elliott responded:

“That’s not in our current plans.”

As the new season approaches, Mercedes seems to be lagging behind Red Bull and Ferrari, prompting Lewis Hamilton to acknowledge that the team faces an uphill battle following a less-than-stellar pre-season test in Bahrain.

Despite this, Elliott, remains optimistic that the team's ongoing development efforts throughout the year can help them recover from a difficult 2022 season and put them back in the running for the championship. Elliott continued:

“In competition [terms], hopefully we’re back but I think we have to be humble, we have to remember we’ve got good competition.

“If we made a step forward and got closer to the front then we’re back in it. And if we can develop over the course of the season then hopefully we can fight for the championship.”

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