F1 News: Mercedes Reveals Harsh Reality Of Floor Reveal During Monaco GP
Last weekend, Monaco offered Formula 1 enthusiasts and rival teams an unexpected treat: a detailed look at the underbelly of the Mercedes and Red Bull cars, thanks to a couple of accidents. But are these insights as valuable as they seem, or just a mirage of an advantage? Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes trackside engineering director, shares his thoughts.
After Lewis Hamilton's W14 became wedged in a barrier during FP3 of last weekend's Monaco Grand Prix, a lifting crane provided a perfect view of the car's underside. Red Bull's floor was later revealed in a similar manner when Sergio Perez hit the wall during qualifying, and with Red Bull enjoying a six-win streak this season, all eyes were on the gorgeous design of their ground-effect-busting floor.
Shovlin acknowledges that the teams are likely studying these rare photos, particularly those of Red Bull. But, he warns, it isn't as simple as copying the designs and expecting instant success.
“All teams will be looking at the photos and I suspect that they’re looking a bit more at the Red Bull ones than the Mercedes or the Ferrari ones!” Shovlin explained to Sky F1.
"Certainly you can get ideas about what they’re trying to do with flow structures, where they might be going with the development direction. If you look at last year, you look at this year, you can understand a bit about what they’re doing there.
“But the reality is, while those pictures can give you a bit of inspiration or an idea, it’s not as simple as let’s copy that, put it on our car and we’ll be as quick as they are. It’s definitely not a case of that.
“And the reality is you’ve got to focus the vast amount of your effort on understanding your own car and developing from there. So I think a little bit of inspiration, but not much more than that.”
With Mercedes hoping to further understand the upgrades they brought to the W14 during Monaco at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, they're keen to fully test their car on a circuit that allows such a thing. And while they're remaining optimistic about the performance gains, they're staying mindful.
“We’re hoping that we’ve improved the overall performance of the car just with more downforce,” Shovlin continued. "We put a lot of focus on the sort of mid and high-speed as well, because early on that was an area we were poor. So hopefully we’ll be a bit happier in those new, fast corners there."
Ahead of the Spanish GP, Mercedes finds itself just one point behind Aston Martin in the Constructors’ Championship, underscoring the competitive landscape of the season.