Mercedes will make upgrades to 2021 F1 car 'in the coming races'

The Mercedes F1 team will be making updates to the W12, according to soon-to-be Chief Technical Officer James Allison. Red Bull Racing have won the last four Formula 1 races, with the defending champions on the ropes. And after the Styrian Grand Prix, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff ruled out more work on the car. But, according to Allison, upgrades are in the pipeline.

“We have reasonable number of things that are going to make our car faster in the coming races,” Allison said on the F1 Nation podcast. “Let’s hope they prove sufficient.”

But what about Wolff saying they won’t work on the W12 anymore?

“I don’t think those two things are at odds with each other. I don’t think Toto has said precisely that.

“What Toto points out is that next year’s rules are a big and hairy affair and they demand a huge amount of our attention.

“So most of the focus of our factory has switched over to the performance discovery for next year. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t things still in the food chain from prior to that focus switch.

“Furthermore it isn’t all of the factory and furthermore, we (Brackley) are only one of two factories. There’s also the PU factory (at Brixworth) and there is a little bit more to come from the PU.

“So there’s some more aerodynamic change in the offing, a little bit of PU, we hope, on the delivery side and just a few things that are not quite as tidy as we would wish that we still have an opportunity to put right while this season is still very much alive and hot.”

What had Toto Wolff said?

Wolff ruled out putting any work in on the car. The Austrian has overseen Mercedes’ run of dominance since 2014. But he believes working on the new car for 2022 is more important.

This is, of course, because of the new regulation changes. As a result, fans will see a whole new type of car race on the tracks. It also will lead to constraints on spending.

It is worth noting that the last time regulation changes of this scale took place was in 2014. That was when the V6 turbo-hybrid engine era began. Mercedes have won every single driver’s and constructor’s championship in that era.

Thus, as the time comes to build for the future, Wolff is more focused on the long term.

“We have stopped developing for this year because we believe the next years are so important to get right,” he said.

“We are having new regulations not only for next year but for years to come, a completely different car concept, and you’ve got to choose the right balance.

“It would make no sense to put a week or two or a month back on the current car, because the gains wouldn’t be anywhere near the gains we are making on the 2022 car.

“Having said that, this is far from over. We will be winning races this season, and we will be having pole positions, and we will be fighting as much as we can for every single result.”

Rule changes affected Mercedes: Allison

Allison, however, did admit that the new regulations to look after tyres affected Mercedes. But that has not affected the work ethic of the team, and especially not that of Lewis Hamilton.

“Ever since the rule changes that were introduced aerodynamically for looking after the tyres, we have found it hellishly hard to find the sort of performance gain rate that we found previously prior to those rules.

“(Lewis) wants to be driving a car that allows him to showcase his skill. But he’s absolutely brilliant for us in these circumstances.

“Because he’s so focused on winning and on championships that his response to a situation like this is just to redouble his own contribution.

“He was in our factory running a lot of simulator laps last week. And he is as committed as anybody in making sure that we find the edge that we need to, to be able to put pressure on the Red Bull in front and I think you see him at his absolute best.”