(Motorsport) Mercedes driver George Russell has expressed his optimism that the new technical directive ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix will slow down Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Ferrari, enabling the Silver Arrows to catch up with their rivals. With ‘porpoising’ becoming an increasingly troublesome issue for Mercedes throughout the season so far, a new rule is being implemented which will take effect this weekend which limits the use of 'flexi-floors', an area which Red Bull and Ferrari have been exploiting so far. 

Mercedes have struggled massively in the 2022 season so far, being off the pace with both Red Bull and Ferrari but have not suffered many reliability issues. The Belgian Grand Prix will be the first race after the summer break and it remains to be seen how much impact will the new technical directive have on the teams, especially Red Bull and Ferrari. 

Speaking in an interview with Sky Sports ahead of the weekend’s action, George Russell said “Spa is going to be interesting. There's changes to some little regulations which may bring other teams towards us. There is no doubt that Ferrari and Red Bull have pushed the regulations in that regard, and we've respected it as the regulation was intended. There's no guarantee it will bring them closer to us. We know if it was on our car, it would make us slower. Every car is different, but it's not going to help them that's for sure." 

Both Red Bull and Ferrari have voiced their displeasure at the new technical directive but have insisted that it will have no impact on their performance. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said “We just have to be careful we don't overshoot here and create a big regulation change at this point of the year. I'm not worried about the technical directive. I don't think that has any consequence for us." 

Also read: Scuderia Ferrari insist no changes are needed despite mishaps