Formula 1 went on holiday with a Mercedes-branded victory, even if the final result could have been even more brilliant for the Star. The two W15s had in fact crossed the finish line in first and second position but, after the race, George Russell was disqualified because his car was found to be underweight by about 1.5 kg at the controls, thus breaking the technical regulations.
During the summer break following Spa, Mercedes examined its initial theory that it was the single-stop strategy that had triggered the process that would eventually lead to the post-race disqualification.
The Anglo-German team concluded that the disqualification was due to three factors: in addition to the loss of rubber due to wear and tear due to a strategy that had not been planned, the incriminating elements were also due to excessive wear of the pad under the car and Russell’s loss of weight during the race.
George Russell, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
In fact, the weight of the driver is included in the minimum total mass of the car required by the regulations, which is why drivers are often told to rehydrate before the weighing procedures, given that even those behind the wheel must exceed the threshold of 80 kg (including any ballast) to comply with the rules. The issue of wear on the pad under the floor is more complex: as the tread on the rubber, which can lose up to a kilo of weight during a stint, has worn away, it has caused the car to get closer to the ground. In key high-speed sections, such as Eau-Rouge, the pad under the car has started to wear out more quickly, but it is still within the maximum wear values set by the regulations.
As F1 resumes after the summer break, Russell was asked whether Mercedes should now take more leeway on weight in light of what they have learned in uncertain situations such as Spa, which the team could theoretically do by adding more ballast. However, this would mean an increase in weight, with a corresponding performance penalty, which is why Russell believes there are more effective ways to ensure weight requirements are met.
“I don’t think we need to take more leeway. I think the processes haven’t been put in place to cover all the different scenarios,” Russell said.
“I knew before the race that I was a little light, but it was too late to make a major change without eating a steak or something! It probably wasn’t the best pre-race routine. But there are things that now, in hindsight, we can do better and will do better in the future. As always, you have to make a mistake before you recognize that there is a problem.”
George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
In fact, what Russell means is that in extreme cases like Spa, where the single-stop strategy had not even been planned, a greater number of scenarios will have to be taken into consideration, including in terms of nutrition.
Russell reflected on his feelings about the disqualification, now that some time has passed since he was initially “heartbroken” about the result.
“I’ve been pushing the team for a long time to keep pushing the limit. If you take the edge in everything you do, you’ll never get disqualified, you’ll never make a driving mistake and you’ll never spin. But you never know what the real potential is.”
“And of course it’s very frustrating that the one just under the weight limit was the race we won, but there’s no hard feelings because we’re together and this will make us stronger for the future. I lost 25 points, but for me it’s still a win. I kept the helmet and I’ll put it on the nightstand with the other two wins. The celebrations I had with the team right after the race were some of the best of my career, so I’m just taking the positives from what happened.”
#Russell #knew #risking #disqualification #Spa #win
