In the second half of the 2024 Formula 1 season, Mercedes has had to deal with financial constraints. Since the return to the track after the summer break, Mercedes has faced some particularly costly events, including incidents involving Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Monza and two involving George Russell between Austin and Mexico.
These expenses are significant, as the team has had to repair or rebuild damaged parts. Antonelli’s crash during Monza practice resulted in damage to a floor (though it was the disapproved Spa version), the front wing, and other components, while the two incidents involving George Russell during Austin qualifying and FP2 in Mexico were even more costly.
In both cases, Mercedes had to work beyond what is permitted by regulations due to the extent of the damage, which in Mexico even led the team to replace the chassis, though it is expected to be repairable. In Austin, Russell damaged the kit with the latest updates, of which there were only two units, one per car. Mercedes had to send these back to Brackley for repairs, and the package should be ready for this weekend in Brazil. However, this is an unplanned extra expense that impacts the budget.
Speaking after the Mexican Grand Prix, Toto Wolff explained that Mercedes was forced to stop development on the current car because recent accidents have pushed them to the spending limit for the season. Although development had effectively concluded with only four races left, with teams focused on next year, repair costs are piling up.
Commenting on the situation, Toto Wolff stated, “Within the cost cap landscape, the situation is complex. These three incidents have put us in a difficult position, and Friday’s incident [in Mexico] was particularly severe. We had to use an entirely new chassis, which is a huge hit to the cost cap.”
“We’ll probably have to reduce what we bring to the car. In Brazil, we’ll have two packages with updates, two floors, but that’s it. There won’t be anything else. We have certain part limitations that we’ll need to manage creatively. And, of course, this impacts the number of developed parts we can put on the car,” the Team Principal said.
Despite concerns about the cost cap, Toto Wolff said there was no consideration of intervening with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, who fought hard for fourth place in Mexico, although, towards the end, after some intense defensive moves, the Team Principal suggested a more cautious approach to the drivers.
As Wolff hinted, the updated floor should return for George Russell in Brazil, repaired after being sent to Brackley. However, Mercedes does not rule out having two different floor specifications on the W15s in São Paulo, particularly because Lewis Hamilton wasn’t entirely satisfied with the new updates, as mentioned in Mexico.
“I’m always open to what the drivers think. I’m sure George will choose the new one, and Lewis may want to go back to the old floor in Brazil. We’ll definitely talk with him and see what his preference is.”
Hamilton might revert to the old version, but Mercedes is still uncertain whether the updates have caused any aerodynamic imbalances that may have triggered the incidents. In Mexico, as seen in Austin, the issues seemed to be due to a combination of aerodynamic and mechanical setup, with Russell losing control after the car began bouncing following contact with the curb.
“There might be something in the aerodynamics package that’s causing something we don’t fully understand, given we had two serious crashes at the same corner in Austin. But then there was also an incident with the old car in Mexico,” Wolff said.
“These cars are balanced on a razor’s edge, so Brazil will be an interesting test to see if there’s instability at high or low speed. I don’t think you can simply conclude that one setup is better than the other.”
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