Mercedes has voiced concerns ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix next
weekend, the penultimate event of the Formula 1 season. The
Brackley-based squad enters the round after a disappointing outing
in Brazil last time out where it scored eighth place with Lewis
Hamilton and George Russell retired as the W14 was badly exposed.
Las Vegas’ return to the F1 schedule will see the F1 race down the
famous strip with the Grand Prix being staged on Saturday night
local time – the first Saturday race since 1985. Cold temperatures
are set to be present when the action kicks off as all of the
sessions will be held after sunset, which may see drivers struggle
to generate tyre grip. Teams will have to combat the cold
temperatures while also learning the circuit for the first time. ‘A
trip into the unknown’ Riccardo Musconi, Mercedes’ Head of
Trackside Performance, has stated that all teams are facing a trip
into the unkown in Las Vegas. “It’s a completely new ball game,” he
said. “We have tried to gather as much information, as I am sure
every other team has tried to. “We have models of the track in the
simulator, we have gathered other information and pictures of the
tarmac and so on. “The weather is going to play a big part too. It
is quite cold at this time of the year in Vegas, especially with
the sessions happening around midnight. “We will have the softest
selection of tyres. “That is adding an extra dimension to the
problem. The truth is every team to some degree will venture into
the unknown because we don’t have any previous data. “The
preparation work we are conducting at the factory will have to
cover different dimensions, different aspects of it and more than
we usually do for other tracks.”
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