Mercedes explained that it made a configuration change for TL2 in Hungary that didn't work, but believes that the rain forecast for qualifying may bring a "guessing game" for the teams
Mercedes left Friday's free practice at the Hungaroring with the feeling that the day's results do not bring the definitive conclusion about where the team stands in relation to the other opponents. This is because Saturday in Hungary promises to be rainy, which, according to Andrew Shovlin, may bring "a guessing game."
In terms of performance, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were better in the first session of the day than in the second. The director of track engineering explained that the German team opted for a different setup for TL2, but the change did not have the expected effect.
"We came here kind of wanting to do some experiments on the car, and I think the ones we did in TL2 threw us off. We looked stronger in the first session," Shovlin assessed. "There were little things that I'm sure we'll have to take out overnight, because they weren't very good."
"Lewis had problems in one of his stints with low fuel. That affected the runs with more fuel, but as I said, some changes in the setup took the wrong way," the engineer added.
In the first session, Russell was fifth fastest, while Hamilton finished eighth. In TL2, the #63 finished eighth, while the seven-time champion was 11th. But for Shovlin, it doesn't mean that the second practice was difficult. "I think we will face quite different conditions in TL3 and qualifying. It also looks like it will be colder in the race than today. It's not the end of the world, so."
"There's a lot of data to analyze, and I think we know what we want to do. With wet track, it's a completely different game. It's kind of a guessing game. In Montreal, we were fine in the wet. At Silverstone, we were okay... We'll ride in TL3 to see where we are," he said.
Coming from its best result in 2022, with the double podium won in France by its drivers, Mercedes has only one goal this year: to win again. "That's what we are working for," stressed Shovlin, also saying that he sees the development of the Brackley team quite strong. "We've corrected some problems that were holding us back and we're getting closer to the front."
"At Paul Ricard, it looked like we were going to fight again. Not so long ago, we were miles away. We are very happy with this projection. We know where we want to go, and there will be a big step forward for Spa and beyond," the director concluded.