(Motorsport) The Spanish Grand Prix could be a turning point for Mercedes as its a crucial venue where the Silver Arrows can compare the troubled and underperforming W13 to the different pre-season car in order to analyse the performances and map out a direction to move forward for the rest of the season. It’s fair to say that it’s been an extremely disappointing season for Mercedes so far as the W13 has failed to qualify higher than fifth while Red Bull and Ferrari have dominated headlines for the right reasons. 

Recently, Lewis Hamilton had claimed that the upgrade packages implemented in the W13 have failed to make any improvements in the car and the seven time World Champion has been regularly outperformed by his teammate George Russell so far. The porpoising issue is still not solved and continues to severely affect the Silver Arrows, more so than any other team on the grid. Simulations have incorrectly suggested that the ‘no sidepods’ design of the W13 would yield better results than the standard sidepod spec that was tested in Spain earlier this season and this could be a valuable opportunity to compare the two cars on the track.

As per simulations, the car should be outperforming both Red Bull and Ferrari if it could be run at a lower height, however, the reality of the situation is that theoretical performance is very different from what happens on the track and it doesn’t seem feasible for the car to run at the height it’s designed for. This weekend, Mercedes can compare the original spec cars data on the same track as the W13 car to understand the problem more deeply and Toto Wolff has already reiterated that he will not be hesitant to take drastic measures if needed to salvage the season. Wolff said “I wouldn't discount anything. But we need to give all of our people that have produced great race cars in the past the benefit of the doubt and we believe this is the route to go.

In Barcelona, we can compare the car with the way it was during the winter tests. After that, we have to look in the mirror. At the moment we are still faithful to the current concept. We are not looking at the neighbour whether it is nicer or not." When asked how W13’s failure so far may impact the design of the 2023 car, Wolff said “That's a very good question. We will soon be at the point where we have critical decisions to make about that."

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