Black Mercedes, guaranteed success for the German team?
She created a surprise. Mercedes unveiled, on Wednesday, February 15th, its new W14 entirely in black. It is the third time that the German team has offered these colors, which have been quite successful for them in the past.
A completely black dress. A light touch of sky blue accompanies the few sponsors and the drivers’ numbers. The new Mercedes W14 has caused a sensation on social media. For some, this single-seater recalls two of the team’s previous successful models: the W11 and the W12.
These two historic cars have been successful. First, the 2020 W11 largely dominated the podiums and discussions. In a season heavily disrupted by Covid and uncertainties, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas let the pole position slip away on two occasions (Turkey and Abu Dhabi).
The W11 missile, a W12 but less speedy.
The duo of the silver (or black) arrows also secured most of the victories of the year. Only Max Verstappen (70th anniversary and Abu Dhabi), Sergio Perez (Bahrain), and Pierre Gasly (Monza) prevented a 100% Mercedes dominance this year. However, the team easily clinched the constructor’s title and Lewis Hamilton secured his 7th world championship. Both drivers were able to take advantage of the well-built and high-performing W11, equipped with the DAS, a system that adjusts the wheel alignment.
This device has been banned for 2021, another year where Mercedes came with a black race car. However, touches of gray and red accompanied the W12. This Formula 1, less radical in dark shades, also was on the track.
A W12 still capable of competing with the Red Bull.
This year, the British driver, just like his teammate, spent most of their time admiring the Red Bull’s exhausts, which were much faster. However, Lewis Hamilton managed to put on a show and show that this car, the second fastest on the grid, was capable of speeding like an arrow.
22 successes in two years
Firstly in Great Britain, where the local driver caught up with Charles Leclerc, who was heading towards a victory that was within his grasp, second by second. Then, in Qatar. But most importantly, in Brazil, where he made two spectacular comebacks: in the sprint race and in the main race. On Ayrton Senna’s home turf, the seven-time world champion took full advantage of his new engine to make an impressive total of 25 overtakes in both races.
Across both of these two exercises, Mercedes finished in the top position 22 times, compared to 13 for the Austrian rival. Even though the German team did not secure the driver’s title in 2021, black seems to be a lucky color for Toto Wolff’s team.
