(Motorsport) Mercedes will be looking for an improvement in the W13’s performance ahead of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. The Silver Arrows may have got the grip on the ‘porpoising’ issue but the car has been struggling for pace against the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari. However, expectations are at an all time high for the Brackley based outfit after Lewis Hamilton finished third in the Canadian Grand Prix while George Russell was fourth. 

In the post-Canada debrief, Mercedes technical director Mike Elliott confirmed that upgrades will be implemented into the W13 ahead of the British Grand Prix. He said “We will be bringing new bits to Silverstone. We will be trying to push the car forward, trying to get some pace from the package we've got as well as the new bits we are going to add to it. I think at the same time, though, we have to be honest with ourselves and say at the moment we are just a bit behind those frontrunners in Ferrari and Red Bull. And in a normal race I think it is going to be tough." 

Having had their last major upgrade ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, the team has been struggling with the porpoising issue since then but are hoping for the situation to be more in control going forwards. "I think Silverstone will be a circuit that suits us a little bit better, like Barcelona did, but maybe it will be just a little bit difficult," added Elliott. “Whatever happens we will push as hard as we can. Our drivers will push as hard as we can because we want to get back to winning."

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff stated: "Silverstone was good to us in the past and the circuit is smoother than the last three ones. But it's not Barcelona. Now we should manage our own expectations, and just really grind away, look at the data and come up with some sensible solutions. Not only for Silverstone, but going forward as well." As per former Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg, Mercedes stand no chance of catching up to Red Bull and Ferrari this weekend. In an interview with Any Driven Monday, Rosberg said “No they can't win, no way! They're still too far away from the performance of Ferrari and Red Bull. They're still miles away."

Also read: Lewis Hamilton urges Mercedes to reduce experiments on race weekends