Grave concerns aired with Mercedes in ‘toughest position’ ever for top team

Former Jordan technical director Gary Anderson believes Mercedes are “in as tough a position” he has ever seen for a leading F1 team, claiming there is no evidence yet that the team know what to do with their 2024 car.

Having won eight consecutive Constructors’ titles between 2014 and 2021, Mercedes were restricted to just a single victory in 2022 in the first year of F1’s ground effect regulations.

The team had hoped to return to title contention in 2023, but remain winless ahead of the final two races in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi.

Mercedes likened to a yo-yo by F1 design legend

Mercedes’ season slumped to a new low at last weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix, where Lewis Hamilton finished more than a minute behind Max Verstappen’s dominant Red Bull, with the team just 20 points ahead of Ferrari in the fight for second spot in the standings.

Writing in his column for the Telegraph, Anderson admitted that he has been left aghast by the team’s lack of progress compared to their rivals.

He said: “Mercedes are probably in as tough a position as I have seen any top team in. It is not a matter of just getting more downforce in the car to go faster. When they do that, they actually probably get worse.

“They have got a tough task and it will be a clean sheet of paper they need [for 2024] because they have not shown yet that they know exactly which direction to go in.

“Mercedes look around and see Red Bull starting the season strong and ending the season strong. McLaren started the season weak but are ending the season very strong.

“Aston Martin started the season strong, lost their way, regrouped and have got back on the podium. Even Toro Rosso [sic] have shown that they could improve the car as the season went past.

“Ferrari have not really progressed but have hung in there quite well. They have not been a consistent Red Bull-beater by any means, but they have been the second-best team, just about.

“Mercedes have never shown that. They are a yo-yo. They could be on the front row one weekend and not get into the top 10 the next weekend. They themselves will say they do not know why.”

PlanetF1.com recommends

The other eight F1 cars that have given Lewis Hamilton trouble

Revealed: The F1 2023 World Championship standings without Red Bull

Anderson went on speculate that Mercedes remain constrained by the former zero-pod car concept, which the team initially retained for 2023 before deciding to abandon the design after a poor performance at the first race in Bahrain.

And he warned against the team simply producing a Red Bull copy for next season, insisting that an understanding of the fundamental aerodynamic philosophy behind it is crucial.

He explained: “They can be restricted because of the mechanical geometry of their car, with, for example, the zero sidepods.

“The cooling system and the chassis profiles could be restricting their ability to optimise the underfloor. But it has been underlined in recent weeks that they will need to change philosophy dramatically to what they have now.

“Are Mercedes bold enough to just copy the underfloor of a Red Bull, a McLaren or an Aston Martin? The big thing is the aerodynamic philosophy behind that geometry.

“Having the car look the same is one thing but having it work the same is a different thing altogether.

“And that is where you need to have the philosophy of the aerodynamics – how it instils confidence in the driver and how their package works as a unit.

“That does not always come from a car looking the same. They could go off and copy Red Bull and it could be worse because their philosophy and their aerodynamics are not the same.”

Read next: ‘Radical’ concept change teased as Red Bull bid to ‘annihilate’ F1 2024 competition