Mercedes will run different aerodynamic packages for George Russell and Kimi Antonelli at the Singapore Grand Prix as the team tries to understand why the upgrades introduced in Malaysia failed to deliver the expected performance. Russell will race the older W17 package last used in Baku, while Antonelli runs the upgraded package that debuted with difficulty at Sepang.
The decision is unusual, with the split applying across the whole Sprint weekend. Russell revealed he first floated the idea before the Sunday race in Malaysia. Once he was set to start last for the Grand Prix after an engine penalty following his car's failure, he said the choice became a "no-brainer". Russell had dropped out of third place with five laps to go at Sepang, leaving him 84 points behind team-mate Antonelli in the championship.
The Sepang weekend was the worst of the year for Mercedes in terms of pace and qualifying. Russell said both drivers would likely have been on the podium had his power unit not failed, but added that the team is unsure whether the problems were specific to Malaysia or linked to the upgrade. He said there was no clear technical evidence pointing to the update, but noted that performance is measured by the stopwatch rather than downforce figures, and the stopwatch was poor in Malaysia.
Russell said he is happy to return to the Baku-spec package, which took him to victory in Azerbaijan two races earlier, and to make a direct comparison. He said he is not fighting for the race or championship this weekend, making it the right time to run the test.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing