F1 | Vowles: “Are Mercedes' tyre problems fixed? It's unlikely”
Mercedes’ Motorsport Strategy Director James Vowles, has given an insight into the state of play with Mercedes' tyre wear following their performance in Spain.
Much has been said in the motorsport community about the Instagram Mercedes-AMG F1 Debrief videos. You do not have to look far in the comments section to see remarks from fans like ‘Mercedes are winning so much that they are having to give their secrets away.’ Now, obviously that is not the case, but it is a good soundbite. However, the latest debrief video hosted by Mercedes’ Motorsport Strategy Director James Vowles, certainly has given an insight into the state of play with the tyre wear and we have effectively been told not be fooled by Lewis Hamilton’s dominant victory in Spain because it is unlikely they have resolved the tryre problem so evident at the Silverstone double-header.
“Clearly following Silverstone, there was a lot of focus on the tyre, the tyre management and the overheating that we experienced during the course of that race, including the blistering,” James Vowles explained in Mercedes’ latest Instagram IGTV offering.
“We had but a few days to get on top of this, and clearly you are not going to change the car dramatically between those two events.”
So, if there had not been major changes, why was the 6-time F1 World Champion so dominant in Spain? James Vowles supplied the answer...or in other words - gave the secrets away!
“Barcelona is slightly different, it’s a higher downforce track, we run a bigger wing than we do at Silverstone, but other than that you are not going to fundamentally change the design of the car. So, you work with what you have, which is set-up and management.”
Racing in Barcelona was almost as much as a hindrance as a benefit though as due to the fact the venue is different it is a challenge for the Mercedes team to see if they had resolved their issues:
“We highlighted that there were a few areas where we weren’t quite optimum at Silverstone if we had to go back there, but the problem is, without racing at the same circuit and the same conditions, you can’t validate that.”
“And as we went into Barcelona, there were a few tweaks on set-up and a few tweaks on how we were going to approach the weekend and use the tyres. I’m happy to say that the incredible work that was done over those, really just a few, days really paid off during the course of the race.”
This sentiment was echoed by Lewis Hamilton when speaking during the track interviews which were conducted by Martin Brundle after Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix:
“A fantastic effort from the team. Oh God, it felt really good out there today. It was a real surprise because we had this problem with the tyres. Management was very, very good and ultimately our understanding of what happened last week that we brought into this weekend has inevitably enabled us to do what we did today. I didn’t even know it was the last lap at the end. That’s how zoned in I was. I was ready to keep going.”
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team’s tyre management was very impressive, and James Vowles went into greater detail during the IGTV presentation:
“We were managing the tyres, as was Verstappen, but when we needed a bit of performance it was there and available. And Lewis was just able to eke out a tenth at a time at the key points in the race.
“And really, it paid dividends. For Valtteri, the car that was following the other two in the dirty air for most of the race, and that’s what makes overheating even worse, he was able to really bring it home, scythe through traffic, and even get just about within undercut range of Verstappen.
“That’s an incredible change of where we were just seven days before.”
However, to anyone thinking that Mercedes has turned a corner and will continue to dominate the season, Vowles warns against such an assumption:
“Now, the reality is, are the problems fixed? It’s unlikely. The situation that happened at Silverstone is different to what we had in Barcelona...We have to keep learning; we have to keep improving. But what I’m happy to report is that the conditions we had in Barcelona were some of the most difficult this year.”
“It was as warm, it was as sweltering on track and the reality behind that is, we performed well in those conditions, and we need to keep improving and moving forward.”
Lewis Hamilton summed up Mercedes-AMG Petronas’ current mindset in his post-race comments to the media:
"We can’t just rest on today and that’s the great thing about this team. They never rest on our success. They continue to try to raise the bar and understand and just go from strength to strength.”
Sunday’s race was not one for the history books of great on track battles and of course they cannot all be thrillers. However, what Sunday showed is just how far out in front Lewis Hamilton is.
Therefore, if anyone stands any chance of catching Lewis...maybe he needs to do an IGTV presentation giving away his secrets – but don’t hold your breath on that one.
