“We've made some really good findings recently”: George Russell positive about 2024 Mercedes car and closing the gap to Red Bull 

George Russell believes Mercedes have made gains in their 2024 F1 challenger. Speaking in the press conference ahead of the 2023 Qatar GP, the Briton stated that his team can cover the gap to the Red Bull over the winter.

In the last two races, the gap between Red Bull and Mercedes has been approximately half-a-second, particularly in the qualifying pace.

Asked by Sportskeeda if that was a gap that could be covered over the winter, Russell was positive. He feels his team has discovered areas where they could improve for next year.

Answering Sportskeeda’s question in the press conference, George Russell said:

“Yeah, I believe so. I think when we look at our car, we see a number of flaws in it. It's not like we're looking at it scratching our head, thinking where can we improve it? We think there's loads of places that we can improve it. We've made some really good findings recently with regards to the aero of the car and some of the bits and pieces on the car, which is looking very promising.

"But we can never promise what we're going to deliver over the winter in terms of a result, because it's a relative game. We can only focus on ourselves. But I'm extremely confident in my team. Very confident in the decision-makers and the direction we're heading, that we've made some really great learnings. And we won't trip up and make a mistake as we have done these past few seasons.”

Aston Martin almost took a leap of two seconds over the winter while McLaren became front runners over the course of the season.

Mercedes’ biggest weakness has been the rear-end stability and their ride height, which creates bouncing at tracks like Singapore.

George Russell felt that Mercedes have found areas they can improve in over the course of the 2023 season and their 2024 car will definitely be an improved version of the W14. However, the Briton believed it was a relative game.

The W14 featured their ‘No sidepod’ concept in its design philosophy, which was eventually scrapped mid-season around the Barcelona race. After scrapping the uncomfortable concept, the team opted for a design without side-pods which has a promising race pace but lacks in qualifying pace.

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Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen outline their expectations from Mercedes and Red Bull in 2024

Lewis Hamilton has faith his team will improve their car over the winter and believes it is important to focus on their own job rather than focusing on closing the gap to Red Bull. Asked by Sportskeeda, what gains are expected at Milton Keynes over the winter, Max Verstappen felt there was no point discussing it now.

Answering Sportskeeda’s question, the Mercedes champion said:

“I have 100 percent faith in the guys, the team back in the factory working away on it. And who knows? I mean, we don't know where they are or where they're progressing to. I think we just have to focus on our job and not necessarily so focused on necessarily closing that gap. It’s going to be what it is. By the time we get to the first race, hopefully it is closed.”

Speaking about the progress expected from Red Bull, Verstappen said:

“Maybe. We'll find out next year. There's no point to talk about it now. I'm just enjoying the moment and we keep pushing. We keep working hard.”

With both the team and driver’s championships wrapped up by Red Bull, they are the benchmark when it comes to performance. The narrative going into the next few races is about closing the gap to them.

More than old rival Mercedes being able to close the gap, its customer teams McLaren and Aston Martin have definitely been able to show some promising pace. They are closer to bunching up the field at the front by 2024. Both Mercedes drivers line up behind the newly crowned triple champion for the 2023 Qatar GP.