What to expect from Mercedes’ much-anticipated Imola upgrade package

After making a disappointing start to 2023, Mercedes are working on a raft of “consistent” updates over the coming races to improve the competitiveness of their troubled W14 challenger. 

• Hamilton ‘counting down days’ to Mercedes F1 upgrades

The first major step in the evolution of Mercedes’ 2023 car - including rumoured revisions to the sidepod area - is set to arrive at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix later this month.

But Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is keen to manage expectations and warned that the upgrade won’t result in the team suddenly being able to “run circles” around F1 pace-setters Red Bull. 

“The target is Imola,” Wolff said.

“I just need to manage everyone’s expectations because we are talking so much about the upgrade that when we put it down on the track, we aren’t likely to run circles around Red Bull. 

"It is going to be a good baseline, I think.”

As well as adding downforce to the W14, Wolff revealed that Mercedes’ priority is to improve the “ride” for Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. 

“For our car, it is more about the ride control than it is about sheer downforce,” he explained. 

“We could put a lot of downforce on the car but the car would be too low and too stiff.

“You can see on the onboards, [the Red Bull] is barely moving and the speed on the straights, all the bumps, the car balance looks easy. 

“You look at all the other onboards, it looks like the cars are tricky. So I think generally the ground effect cars are s**t cars, it is just who has the least s**ttiest is ahead.”

Wolff said Mercedes would have developed an entirely new chassis and brought “double the amount of upgrades” this season if they were not constrained by the F1 cost cap. 

“We are more stuck than before because if we would be completely free, we would bring a different chassis,” he added. 

“So we have to really decide carefully what is it that we want to upgrade. 

“We're bringing a new front suspension to Imola and the aero upgrade that comes with it and floor. But if we were free, we’d probably bring double the amount of upgrades, but so would the others. 

“As it’s a relative game, OK, you just need to be clever in taking the right decisions that bring the optimum amount of performance.”

Wolff said of Mercedes’ chances of reducing their deficit to Red Bull: “I think we can close it, if we get the platform right. 

“It’s less about adding 10 points of downforce. It's more about giving the drivers a car where, if they turn the wheel into the corner, they actually know the rear doesn't overtake them. That’s the problem.

“And then we can catch up, as we did last year. It’s better not to change the regulations again, on our initiative, to lose it again.”