F1 Rumor: Mercedes Considers Drastic Change For Upcoming Brazilian Grand Prix

Saajan Jogia | Oct 29, 2024

Oct 18, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team driver George Russell (63) of Team Great Britain drives during practice for the 2024 US Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Mercedes Formula 1 team is contemplating a swap for the upcoming Brazilian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton could receive the older specification parts on his W15 that George Russell used in Mexico last weekend. In return, the new specification parts used on Hamilton's car during the race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez will be used on Russell's car.

This comes after Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff revealed that the seven-time world champion preferred the older configuration on his W15. The British driver pairing engaged in an intense battle during the Mexico City Grand Prix before they secured the 4th and 5th positions at the finish line, allowing Mercedes to compare the performance of the new spec against the older one.

Following his qualifying crash at the United States Grand Prix, George Russell had no new parts available, leading him to use the Silverstone-spec W15 during the race in Mexico. Meanwhile, at the Circuit of the Americas, Lewis Hamilton's race ended early when he lost control of his car and became stuck in the gravel, resulting in a disappointing non-finish. Speaking on the possibility of a spec swap for this weekend in São Paulo after the close battle in Mexico, Hamilton told the media:

"It was always going to happen at some point, I think he had a problem with his wing, but we got a lot of information.

"I could see where he was better than me, and package-wise, hopefully, the team has lots of data, so we will figure out who starts on what next week.

"I don't think either of us is silly. George is pretty smart, so it was fair and he is pretty good at where he places his car, and me as well.

"So when they came onto the radio to say keep it clean, it was like, 'Of course'. It makes no real difference when you're fighting anyone else, except as it is your team-mate, you need to be double-careful."

Hamilton admitted that he made the mistake of "taking too much front wing" out of his W15 ahead of the race in Mexico, but was eventually satisfied after it was rectified. He added:

"I had fun, had a good start but took too much front-wing out in the first stint, I had massive understeer.

"You have to guesstimate where to be with the front wing, I had a lot less than George. It felt like the right thing to do, but it was completely not.

"After my stop, I was able to rectify it. I had better pace and was able to push and keep going."