Mercedes has finished a filming day with the W13 at Paul Ricard, which apparently featured the changes the team was intending to introduce this weekend in Barcelona.
According to multiple reports, the filming day took place behind closed doors in France on Wednesday, with George Russell in the driver’s seat, however the team has not verified the running on its website or social media accounts.
On Wednesday night, Mercedes’ social media outlets published a snapshot of George Russell in action at the French Grand Prix location.
As the crew made their way to Barcelona, Paul Ricard provided a suitable pit stop with identical air and track temperatures. After testing many new parts and setups last time out in Miami, Mercedes is likely to bring more enhancements to the Spanish Grand Prix.
Mercedes were limited to 100 kilometres of running on specially-supplied Pirelli sample tyres, which is comparable to 17 circuits of the whole Paul Ricard track.
A filming day is primarily used to shoot video for team partners and the media, but it is also frequently utilised as a dedicated shakedown session for new vehicles.
Mercedes has used up both of their allowed filming days for the year, having previously visited the Silverstone Circuit ahead of pre-season testing.
Mercedes also made upgrades in their limited testing as sources claims that a revised rear wing arrangement and modified power unit transported to Spain helped them boost straight-line speed by 3-4kph.
Extra enhancements are also planned for the incumbent Constructors’ champions for Barcelona, with the primary goal of resolving Mercedes’ porpoising troubles, which have plagued them since the season began.
Russell previously admitted that the W13 is undrivable due to the extreme nature of the porpoising he experiences behind the wheel, which sees the car bouncing up and down in a straight line due to the configuration of the ground effect aerodynamics on the new generation of cars – and the British driver claimed it has caused him back and neck issues as a result.
Despite being “specialists in bouncing,” as team president Toto Wolff puts it, Russell is sure that once Mercedes resolves the underlying flaws with their car, they will be able to get much closer to the front.
Last Friday, Ferrari participated in a similar filming session at Monza, where the Scuderia apparently tested their own upgrades for the Spanish Grand Prix with Charles Leclerc at the wheel.
