Following a technical directive from the FIA on the eve of the Montreal weekend to help reduce porpoising, F1 teams were advised they could add a second support to help stiffen their flat bottom.
Mercedes was the only team to choose to go this route, testing a stopgap solution in George Russell’s car during Friday practice.
But Brackley’s actions drew the attention of rival teams, who questioned whether the FIA had followed the correct processes in allowing the extra bracket to be installed.
Although the international federation has the right to change the regulations unilaterally for security reasons, that process had not been followed with the change of the rules for the Montreal weekend.
That means that, in theory, the directive that allowed a second support went against the technical regulation, which limits teams to only one of these elements.
Some of Mercedes’ rivals believed that if the team used it in qualifying and the race, there might be grounds for an official protest, as the rules did not match the new technical directive.
Alpine boss Otmar Szafnauer backed up that view before the on-track action began in Montreal on Saturday.
Comparison of the floors of the Mercedes W13
“As for the process, it is a technical directive, and the technical directives, as we all know, are not [part of the] regulation,” he said.
“So it could very well be that we shouldn’t be using this in qualifying or in the race. If the teams have brought those brackets in, I imagine maybe you could look at it afterwards and protest. So it’s against the regulations as it stands. today”.
“[We] definitely don’t have one. And unfortunately, if you have extra support, you can run the car lower and stiffer, and get some advantage.”
Although Mercedes ‘ determination to race with the new mounts might have prompted action from its rivals, in the end the team has avoided any controversy by choosing not to continue with them for the rest of the Canadian GP weekend for performance reasons. .
The team’s version of these supports that was tested in practice did not take the step forward that was expected, so the team has returned to the only support that the regulations allow.
The FIA could choose to push through a formal rule change for the next race at Silverstone, to explicitly allow a second bracket, taking advantage of a World Motor Sport Council meeting scheduled before the British Grand Prix, which could give the go-ahead. to the rule settings.
