Mercedes F1 representative "Insufficient maximum speed is the result of drug" parachute ""[F1-Gate .com]

Toto Wolff, team head of the Mercedes F1, says the lack of top speed in Baku is the result of a “parachute” by a draggy car, coupled with bouncing and a reoccurrence of the problem.

Like the Monaco Grand Prix, Mercedes F1 drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell suffered intense bouncing during the free practice of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

George Russell finished the FP2 session in 7th place, 1.3 seconds behind pacesetter Charles Leclerc, and Lewis Hamilton in 12th place, 1.6 seconds behind.

The Mercedes F1 lags behind mainly at top speed, 11-20km / h behind its rivals on Baku’s 2.2km straight. According to Toto Wolff, up to a second is sacrificed per lap. ..

Toto Wolff said the Mercedes F1 driver felt that the parachute was open behind the W13. This limited the maximum speed of the car in connection with bouncing issues.

“The driver seems to have a parachute behind the car because it’s a car with too much drag. This is the main drawback seen straight between the drag car and bottoming,” Toto Wolff explained. ..

“Others like Ferrari are also bottoming. A little bad, we’re badly bottoming in different parts of the track, which affects our aerodynamics and greatly affects linear velocity. As a result, the ride is not very good. “

“This could cost a few seconds of commas. Yesterday I lost a second straight against Ferrari and Red Bull.”

Ferrari and Red Bull have benefited from a stronger engine than last year, but Toto Wolff said the power unit, which is the strength of the traditional Mercedes F1, suddenly became a weakness, causing a lack of top speed. Is not thinking.

In fact, when the car wasn’t facing a porpoising problem at the Spanish Grand Prix last month, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell suddenly jumped far above the top speed chart.

“I think our engineers have done a great job of understanding how to optimize software and power unit deployments since the beginning of the year, and the problem here isn’t the engine,” Toto Wolff said. rice field.

“In Barcelona, the rear wing was big and the car on the straight was pretty stable and fastest, but it’s not one thing and the engine isn’t the area I want to point out.”