Miami GP: Toto Wolff compares Mercedes car with Kangaroos for excessive bouncing: Mercedes’ team principal Toto Wolff has compared the W13 challenger to Kangaroos and claims that their drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are ‘unhappy’ with the excessive bouncing of the car, ahead of the inaugural Miami Grand Prix. Follow Formula 1 and Miami GP live updates on InsideSport.IN.
Following the qualifying session where Hamilton finished P6 and Russell finished P12, Toto Wolff held no punches while depicting the condition of the Silver Arrows’ struggling vehicle, claiming the car is bouncing like a kangaroo.
Miami GP: Toto Wolff compares Mercedes car with KANGAROOS for excessive bouncing, claims ‘drivers are UNHAPPY’
“Today in FP3 we were completely off with the experiments that we did. The car is still bouncing like a kangaroo and the drivers are not happy with it and you can see that is the reason we are off,” Wolff told Sky Sports.
Meanwhile, it appears that though many expected things to be better for Mercedes in the United States of America for the debut Miami Grand Prix, there are no real signs of improvement. The porpoising issue is still prevalent, with both drivers complaining about it.
We finish-up a tricky Saturday looking towards a race which could play into anyone’s hands 🙌
Let’s see what tomorrow brings, but for the meantime, show your support for @MercedesAMGF1 below 💬#OutRaceYourself #PETRONASMotorsports #MercedesAMGF1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/N3pKYG2vjK
— PETRONAS Motorsports (@PET_Motorsports) May 7, 2022
Hamilton was again struggling to find the pace and was lagging behind Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen as he secured a sixth-place finish. Meanwhile, George Russell had a day to forget as he claimed the twelfth position on the grid.
The grid is set for our maiden Miami Grand Prix 🔥
Who will you be cheering on around @HardRockStadium? #MiamiGP #F1 @f1miami pic.twitter.com/bUUUnkzwI7
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 7, 2022
Disappointing Quali after such an encouraging day yesterday. We’ll do our best to understand what happened and bounce back tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/i7rhiRzjrx
— George Russell (@GeorgeRussell63) May 8, 2022
Miami GP: Toto Wolff compares Mercedes car with KANGAROOS for excessive bouncing, claims ‘drivers are UNHAPPY’
In spite of the battles, Wolff also claimed that his team now understands the car better and has got a grip on the problems. “Yes, we definitely have a better handle on what does and doesn’t work. Also, the slump that we had from yesterday and today helped.”
It has been noticed that the vital issue for Mercedes is the floor of the vehicle. But Wolff accepts it is never all around as simple as having only one issue, as the poor performance stemps from separate issues.
“You are right, it is never one thing that is responsible for performance and under-performance. We had a good car yesterday afternoon. We worsened it a little bit, some things we do understand, but others we do not,” he concluded.
Miami GP: Toto Wolff compares Mercedes car with KANGAROOS for excessive bouncing, claims ‘drivers are UNHAPPY’
