Formula 1 United States GP

How Mercedes upgrades have proved an instant hit at Austin

A raft of changes to the Mercedes W15 appear to have delivered in Formula 1's US GP

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Frederic Vasseur, Team Principal and General Manager, Scuderia Ferrari and Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Mattia Binotto, CEO and CTO, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Jock Clear, Ferrari, Oliver Bearman, Reserve Driver, Ferrari and Haas F1 Team, James Vowles, Team Principal, Williams Racing

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal, Haas F1 Team, Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, with Romain Grosjean

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Helmets of Oscar Piastri, McLaren F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, in the cockpit

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Oscar Piastri, McLaren F1 Team, in the cockpit

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Zhou Guanyu, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Franco Colapinto, Williams, Gaetan Jego, Williams Racing Race Engineer

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24, Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

The flag of the United States of America

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team, NASCAR star Jeff Gordon swap helmets

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Oliver Oakes, Team Principal, Alpine F1 Team, in the Team Principals Press Conference

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing, in the Team Principals Press Conference

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal, Haas F1 Team on stage

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Former NASCAR star Jeff Gordon poses with an Aston Martin Pirelli Hot Laps car

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team, Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal, Haas F1 Team, Raoul Spanger, Manager of Nico Hulkenberg

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Leo Neugebauer in the Haas F1 Team garage

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team, with Gene Haas, Owner and Founder, Haas F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Oscar Piastri, McLaren MCL38

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Mick Schumacher, Reserve Driver, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Mechanics push Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, Alex Albon, Williams FW46

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Sprint pole man Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Sprint pole man Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, celebrates in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, receives his Sprint Qualifyiing Award from Leo Neugebauer, German Track and Field athlete

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Neugebauer, German Track and Field athlete

2024 United States Grand Prix - Friday

After a disappointing time since the Formula 1 summer break, George Russell’s front row start for the United States Grand Prix's sprint race has lifted hopes that a new upgrade package has hit the spot.

Having faced some uncertainties over a Spa floor that was taken off, put back on and then taken off once again, Mercedes does seem in a much better place now.

The changes Mercedes has introduced at the United States Grand Prix are extensive and have been designed to work in unison as they reach back from the front wing all the way down the car.

A new spanwise flap distribution results in the front wing providing a different ratio of performance between outwash and downforce generation.

In concert of this, which has been a feature of this regulation period, the upper wishbone fairing has also been adjusted.

Mercedes W15 detail

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Further downstream, the team has made the switch to an overbite sidepod solution, whilst retaining the P-shaped inlet below (albeit pushed back) and the subsequent bodywork adjusted accordingly.

This will, of course, have a bearing on the airflow’s performance around the sidepod itself, including the undercut.

Mercedes F1 W15 detail

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

In an effort to increase performance from the floor and forward fences, the innermost of which has also been modified, the edge wing has six strakes now on the upturned surface, rather than five.

Interestingly, the latest addition, which is mounted at the front of the edge wing, has more of a hook appearance, folding round and back under itself to help collect and roll up the airflow.

Further downstream, additional cooling capacity has been added too, with outlets to be found around the forward leg of the upper wishbone.

Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin explained that while the floor was new, it was not a dramatic departure from what the team had used before.

"I mean, it's not a sort of fundamentally different concept,” he said. “It's an evolution of that floor from Spa.

“It's not the only change on the car but hopefully it'll be a big enough step that the performance will be obvious.”

Asked if this upgrade could be categorised as a corrective evolution of the previous Spa change that did not work, Shovlin said: “No, because in the wind tunnel, they've just been continuing down and down a development path.

"And I think a lot of our challenge is not really down to what we've been doing in the wind tunnel development. But for the aerodynamicists, they've just been continually working.

“The packages are just set at a defined point in time where you commit it to carbon. But from their point of view, they're just things changing every single day."