Mercedes chief sacrificing working on W14 to develop the W15 car and challenge F1 rivals Red Bull next year

Mercedes Technical Director James Allison has confirmed that he has switched focus to the Silver Arrows 2024 challenger, the W15, and will not be working on the developments of the W14.

Allison, who reassumed the role of technical director at Mercedes earlier this season, recently announced that the team will be introducing upgrades to the W14 late into the season. These upgrades are aimed at providing a better understanding of the car.

The upgrades include a new floor for the W14, which will be introduced in Austin. Despite the ongoing developments, Allison will be focusing on their 2024 challenger, as he wants the team to start the upcoming season on the right foot.

"Since the car will be completely different, I will not work on the W14," the Mercedes Technical Director said. "It is a new season, and it's crucial that we start it off on the right foot with this new car."

F1 Grand Prix of Japan

The Brackley-based design team is set to completely overhaul its design concept for the 2024 car, which will set the tone for the 2025 car before the major regulation changes take effect in 2026.

Hence, James Allison stresses the need to start next season on the right foot, and he reckons Mercedes is on the "very good path", concerning the development of the W15. He says the team has identified the shortcomings of the W14 and is working on the fixes.

“I think much of what ails us now is reasonably understood and we’re working to fix that,” he said to Sky Sports.

After faltering for two years since the regulation changes, the 8x constructor champions need to start their 2024 campaign on a successful note to achieve their aspirations of fighting for the title.

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Mercedes team principal confirms the design team is "trying to get back to basics" for the 2024 car

Since the regulation changes in 2022, Mercedes has struggled to develop a race-winning car. Earlier this season, the team acknowledged its failure to make the right design choices and changed its development direction mid-season.

The Silver Arrows are back to the drawing board, hoping to make a fundamental redesign for their 2024 challenger.

Team principal Toto Wolff confirmed the same, as he stated that the engineers back at the factory are trying to get the fundamentals right.

"For 2024 we're going to change a lot, trying to get back to basics," he told Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport. "I don't want to hear Lewis saying, 'I'm sitting too far ahead with the cockpit, suspension cinematisms that we don't understand and so on."

"We have to be decided on what we understand and what we don't understand we have to put aside: it's not about technical sophistication but about solid engineering."

Earlier in the season, both Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were vocal about the instability of the W14 and its inherent design flaws.

With the team unable to redesign the chassis mid-season, all those modifications will be made to the W15.

With these changes, Wolff remains confident about catching and beating Red Bull before the start of the next regulation cycle.