No support from Norris for Mercedes: 'They have to solve it themselves'
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Although the FIA has let it be known that it is taking Mercedes' criticism of porpoising seriously and is starting an investigation, there seems to be little support for the German team. Lando Norris also has little sympathy for the world champions and thinks the team should solve the problem themselves.
Norris has no problems with porpoising
Talking to F1TV, Norris reveals that he has no problems with porpoising. "We have some porpoising and some bouncing, but it's what you have to deal with. I love it at the moment, I'm not complaining," said the McLaren driver. Norris finished ninth in Baku, just behind his teammate, while Mercedes drivers George Russell and Lewis Hamilton finished third and fourth.
McLaren also experienced problems with porpoising at the beginning of the season, but things improved after the updates introduced in Barcelona. At Mercedes, the problems seem to be mainly due to the Mercedes driving very close to the ground in order to generate more downforce.
Mercedes must solve problems themselves
Toto Wolff believes that the FIA should make changes to the regulations, because the porpoising would cause damage to the drivers. Hamilton complained of a sore back after the race in Baku and even had difficulty getting out of his car. Norris doesn't seem particularly impressed with Mercedes' criticism. He thinks Mercedes could reduce the bouncing considerably with a stiffer floor and higher ride height, but that it would be at the expense of speed.
"They obviously don't want to sacrifice performance," Norris reveals. "I don't think it's something to complain about, they just have to find ways to solve it themselves." The British driver also sees it at McLaren, which did manage to solve the problems. "We could also achieve better performance by making the car lower, but then we would also suffer more from porpoising. It's a trade-off you have to make."