Could a small rule change hurt Mercedes in F1 2023? | F1

Mercedes endured their worst year in F1 since 2012, registering just one victory and one pole position in the entire season.

They finished third in the constructors’ championship, well behind eventual winners Red Bull.

Mercedes were caught out by the new regulations at the start of the season, struggling with the porpoising phenomenon.

Eventually, Mercedes got on top of it and reduced the deficit to Red Bull and Ferrari significantly by the end of the year.

However, for 2023, a new regulation change could set back their hopes of progressing and re-emerging as a dominant force.

In a bid to reduce the teams’ ability to run their cars as close to the track as possible, the FIA ​​has increased the outer floor edges by 15 millimeters with no more than five millimeters vertical deflection when a 250N load is applied downwards as well as 5 millimeters vertically when the same load is applied upwards.

Mercedes struggled to get their W13 working when running a higher ride height in 2022 – something that could catch them out.

“There’s a regulation change next year, which is small but not insignificant in terms of the right height and the cars have all got to run at a higher ride height,” Chandhok said.

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“Which is the one team historically that hasn’t run at a high ride height? The brain power that won all those world championships is still there in Brackley and Brixworth. But I don’t think it’s as easy to fix yet as you might think.”