As the Bahrain testing is underway, teams will look to gather data ahead of the season opening race weekend in Bahrain on March 18th. The new regulations also mean that the cars look unfamiliar to the ones from 2021. Mercedes surprised everyone when they arrived with a unique design to the car on Thursday. As the Silver Arrows are looking to gain an advantage, Toto Wolff heaped praised on his team.

What Are the changes?

Earlier, many rumors hinted Mercedes were prepared to bring a completely new design of the car in Bahrain. And it proved to be right as the Silver Arrows changed their design.

The car differs completely from the W13 launch with little to no sidepods. These are present for the radiators which help in cooling the car down. They have also added the gills on the side of the car.

These changes, with only one week remaining before the season starts, have gathered attention. Formula One managing director Ross Brawn conveyed that no one expected this design from Mercedes.

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Both the Mercedes drivers finished below the top 5 in the time sheet on the first day of Bahrain testing. However, many believe that Mercedes are not showing their full potential as it will intrigue the rest to appeal to the changes.

Toto Wolff’s Thoughts on the Innovation

Toto Wolff chipped in with his thoughts on the new design during the first day of the testing. He stated he is pleased with the innovation that the team has achieved in a short period. However, he insists that the team is not quite there yet.

He added, “I think we are really proud of what we have achieved in terms of concept, but now we need to make it go fast.

I think it’s a development direction that we like, and it’s about tuning the car and so we are experimenting a lot, as we’ve done during the day, and approaching it with curiosity.”

Wolff also revealed that the car is still porpoising because of Bahrain’s humid conditions. In addition to that, they haven’t had the chance to look at the data yet.

The Mercedes Team Principal also had his say on the communication with FIA. He said, “The process is very clear: when you go in a specific development direction that you deem as having the FIA a part of scrutinising it, you are exchanging CAD [computer-aided design] data. You’re making them part of the process.”

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With Mercedes implementing the changes, it has certainly caught the eye of the other teams. It remains to be seen whether they will appeal against the Silver Arrows. As the new season starts in just over a week, teams are preparing for the race in Bahrain. Will Mercedes continue their domination?