Mercedes also fitted a new battery and power unit to put the technical knockout behind in Barcelona on a weekend where very high temperatures were expected, and therefore tested it in a ‘high altitude’ race that already depleted the single-seaters’ oxygen. Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Mercedes have done everything possible to make themselves look ‘flashy’ at this important event after the first defeat of 2026 for Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari. “We have a new battery pack that has been updated in software and hardware, but this is about reliability, this is not an interference from the influence of ADUO because we are not talking about performance,” the World Championship leader said during an appointment with the media on the eve of free practice on Friday. “The problems we had were not linked to temperatures because we always had the same problems, but for example in Canada it was cold and instead it was hot in Barcelona – added Antonelli – in Montmelò, from what they told me, there was a peak in temperature and that turned everything upside down.” Commenting on the new power unit he will use this weekend, Antonelli said: “We are also installing a new power unit due to the fact that we are racing at altitude and the lack of oxygen. This is a very demanding track for various components of the car, especially the brakes and the engine. Considering that we have many reliability problems and this weekend is particularly testing in this respect, we will install new components.”
Automobile Magazine – Formula1 English, News
2026-06-25 21:00:00
Automobile Magazine, 2026-06-26 05:11:00, automobilemagazine.com.tr
Automobile Magazine – English News
Source link 2026-06-27 11:29:00
