George Russell

It is always nice to be here at Spa-Francorchamps and getting to drive a car in anger around this incredible circuit. The resurfaced tarmac has also made it extra fast this year. We’ve got some work to do overnight to find some lap time. The McLarens and the Red Bull of Max Verstappen looked to be a step ahead of us today. We need to dig through the data and put in the work in the simulator at Brackley to hopefully unearth some gains and get closer to them. I’m sure we can do that.

Tomorrow will definitely be a very different day if we are able to do so. The forecast is also for rain tomorrow so that will add another factor into the mix. We have often had good Fridays and the others have caught up come Saturday, so hopefully it will be us doing that this weekend.
Lewis Hamilton

Today wasn’t our best day as the car wasn’t feeling particularly strong. FP1 wasn’t great and we worked on some changes for FP2. That initially improved the balance and it felt good, but once we put the Soft tyre on we struggled more. It was definitely an improvement overall, but others took a step forward to too. We’ve got some time to find overnight, and we will be aiming to do so.

There could be some wet weather tomorrow so that good change things up. If it does rain, it will likely open things up a little bit and we can hopefully take advantage of that. Let’s see what Saturday brings.
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

We've struggled with the car today so we will be working hard overnight as to how to improve for tomorrow. We are losing time across the full speed range, rather than in specific corners, and the long run isn't where we need it to be either. Both of those are linked by a lack of balance and grip.

We therefore have plenty of work to do. We have our team in the simulator back at Brackley already looking at setup options and aiming to make solid progress. There is a good chance we will see some wet running tomorrow. That may make it difficult to evaluate overnight changes, but we will see what we can learn and what Saturday brings.

Toto Talks Belgium

We head into the final race before the summer break on a run of five consecutive podium finishes. We are therefore looking to continue that momentum and finish the first half of the season strongly. The pack at the front is close and we will have to be at our best to do so though. Whilst we are lacking a little bit of pace compared to some of our competitors, we continue to bring performance to the car. We are on a positive trajectory and that is encouraging. It is not yet enough to fight for victories consistently each and every weekend, but has enabled us to be in contention for the top-three more regularly.

Last weekend in Hungary was not straightforward. We qualified out of position and left ourselves with plenty of work to do. We were able to race hard on Sunday though and score solid points, including Lewis claiming his 200th podium in F1 which is a superb achievement. It was positive to see the steps we have made in those hotter conditions, although there is more work to do. Spa is a very different challenge to Budapest. With cooler temperatures and a much more high-speed layout, it will be interesting to see how the W15 performs compared to our rivals.

Fact File: Belgian Grand Prix

    At 7.004km, Spa-Francorchamps is the longest on the F1 calendar. As a result, the race is run over the shortest number of laps of the year – 44.
    The weather at Spa can also heavily impact the race, with a 48% chance of a wet session across the weekend. This makes Spa the race most likely to be affected by rain.
    The run down to the first braking zone at Turn One (La Source) is one of the shortest of the season at just 137m. Only Azerbaijan (90m) and Las Vegas (111m) are shorter.
    The tow at Spa-Francorchamps is very powerful due to the long straights, particularly the section after Raidillon. On the first lap this is even more powerful, because drivers chasing can pick up a tow from multiple cars. The lack of DRS on lap one also increases this effect.
    Parts of the circuit have been re-laid in the lead up to the 2024 race, with a new track surface awaiting the drivers from the exit of Turn 17 to the exit of Turn 4. This included the F1 pitlane.
    It used to be one of the biggest challenges for engine duty and time spent on full throttle, but with the new regulations and new tracks joining it has fallen down the list. It still remains in the top five, though.
    Tyre duty and wear are some of the highest of the season at Spa, with high averages across all four corners of the car.
    From the exit of La Source to the braking zone for Les Combes, the drivers have their foot firmly on the throttle for around 23 seconds (and 1,875 metres) of track layout.
    Valtteri Bottas holds the race lap record at the circuit (1:46:286) from the 2018 event in his Mercedes W09.
    Lewis leads the way for most podiums at the Belgian Grand Prix with 10, including seven in a row between 2015 and 2021.   

Lewis Hamilton

It’s been very difficult to find a balance with the car this weekend where it’s not snappy. That has likely been exacerbated by the heat but, even in the cooler conditions today, we still struggled. It was a real challenge to get the tyres working and we couldn’t quite get them to where we wanted. If we had optimised everything, we could have likely gone one tenth or two quicker, but we didn’t have enough to challenge for pole position today.

Tomorrow is forecast to be, like Friday, very warm. That will make it a challenge, but everyone is in the same boat. It will be interesting to see where our speed is relative to those around us. Our long run pace in practice was solid but we will have to wait and see where we fall out tomorrow.
George Russell

We didn’t do a good enough job today. I was unable to put a lap together earlier in Q1 and that had left us vulnerable near the cut-off. After the red flag, we were on track at its most damp and then we didn’t have enough fuel complete a push lap as it was at its most dry. We should have been comfortably through and that is frustrating. We shouldn’t have been in that position though in the first place and that’s on me. We will go through it tonight to understand what happened, what went wrong, and how to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

P17 is clearly not where we should be qualifying. We should have a car to battle back into the points tomorrow though. We have shown good speed throughout practice and our long run pace was encouraging. Tomorrow is a new day, and we will see what we can achieve.
Toto Wolff, Team Principal & CEO

That was a very disappointing Qualifying session for us today. It was a total underperformance from all of us. Losing a car in Q1 is clearly not acceptable. George struggled to get in a solid lap earlier in the session and we didn’t execute the final run at all. That stemmed from a lack of solid communication between ourselves and the driver. We need to ensure we learn from this so that it doesn’t happen again.

Lewis made it through to Q3 but ultimately, we didn’t have the pace to challenge for much more than P5. We were likely a couple of tenths slower than those ahead in normal conditions anyway, but we were struggling to get on top of the tyre temperatures. It was tricky to find the middle ground and that likely cost us a few more tenths. We need to dust ourselves down and come back stronger tomorrow. It will be a long race so hopefully we can create some opportunities.
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

It was a very frustrating day today. We didn't manage the session well and because of that, George was knocked out in Q1. We will review all the communications to understand how we can learn from our mistakes but ultimately, we weren't joined up and sent the car too early for the fuel we had in the tank.

Lewis finished in a more representative position but aside from the early lap in the damp, the car just wasn't working particularly well in the lower track temperatures. We were struggling with an oversteer balance from relatively early in the lap, which was then getting away from us in the final two sectors. That cost us a lot of time but, even with the car in a better window, it's unlikely that we'd have been troubling any of the top three today.

We've left ourselves with a fair bit of work to do tomorrow. With Lewis, we'll be looking to see if we can get him into a position to fight for a podium. With George, we'll be looking for ways to get him back into the points and hopefully the upper reaches.

Music, dance, performance and comedy: over the next four weeks, “Urban Culture at the Mercedes-Benz Museum” will once again be offering a diverse programme. From 18 July to 18 August 2024, artists from numerous genres will be performing on the open-air stage. All events and ticket booking options can be found on the website: www.mercedes-benz.com/stadtkultur.

“Urban Culture at the Mercedes-Benz Museum with concerts, club evenings and comedy now has a large fan base. Artists from various fields will be offering their programme to large audiences. They will be performing on their own initiative, and we will make our open-air stage and infrastructure available to them. The diversity of programs underscore the importance of the Mercedes-Benz Museum as a cultural venue.”
Bettina Haussmann, Director of Mercedes-Benz Museum

The event will kick off on 18 July 2024 at 7 pm with an evening of “Best of Poetry Slam”. Other performance programmes include “Best of Erotic Slam” (24 July, 7 pm) and “Kopfkino Vol. 14” (28 July, 7 pm). “Comedy 72” (4 August, 7 pm) and “Stuttgarter Comedy Clash” (16 and 17 August, 7:30 pm) will ensure plenty of laughs.

Music lovers are in for a treat with events such as the “Summer Night Concert” (25 July, 8 pm), “Old School Vibes” (27 July, 5 pm) and “Udo Jürgens – Homage to a Legend” (8 August, 7:30 pm). Top-class bands and DJs guarantee unforgettable evenings in the open air, for example Dominic Eulberg (21 July, 5 pm) and Genetikk (3 August, 7 pm).

First events are sold out already. The following have proven to be crowd pullers: “MAMAGEHTTANZEN” – the party event for mothers (19 July, 6 pm), “Best of Erotic Slam” (24 July) and “Stuttgarter Comedy Clash” (16 August). Due to high demand, the six artists of the Comedy Clash are offering an additional date on 17 August. Tickets are still available for all other events.

The museum’s further own events include the popular open-air cinema (23 August to 8 September, www.mercedes-benz.com/oak). On Sundays until 13 October, the Classics & Coffee open-brand classic car meeting will also be attracting (www.mercedes-benz.com/classics-coffee) classic and vintage fans with their vehicles, with the next time planned for 28 July. The themed specials on individual model series and vehicle categories from the history of the Mercedes-Benz brand are very popular.

Exciting, energising and breathtaking – the Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed concept is the highlight in the run-up to the Formula 1™ Monaco Grand Prix. The radical design of a completely open, two-seater performance car without a roof or windscreen is a tribute to motor racing. The concept car provides a preview of the first model in the highly limited Mercedes-Benz Mythos series. The world premiere of the Concept Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed took place in an exclusive setting on the sidelines of the Formula 1™ Monaco Grand Prix. The vehicle was unveiled on a floating pontoon in the harbour of the principality and also impressed Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team racing drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

“The Concept Mercedes-AMG PureSpeed offers a glimpse of what is probably the most direct way to experience performance and driving pleasure. Radically open, neither a roof nor the windscreen separate the two passengers from the elements. You can experience light, air and passion unfiltered with all your senses. As the concept of our first Mythos vehicle, it embodies the highest level of exclusivity. Design elements such as the HALO also create a Formula 1 feeling. There is therefore no better place for its world premiere than Monaco.”
Michael Schiebe, Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-AMG GmbH and Head of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class & Mercedes Maybach divisions

The Concept Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed celebrates the unique tradition of Mercedes‑Benz with pure and uncompromising race-car design, innovative materials and modern technology. The strictly limited series of 250 units will only be available to the most dedicated Mercedes‑Benz enthusiasts and collectors. Inspired by legendary race cars, the combination of unrivalled racing aesthetics and highly dynamic performance makes the Concept Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed a unique driving machine for connoisseurs. It embodies the “pinnacle of exclusivity” from Mercedes-Benz in the top segment.
HALO system instead of A-pillar

One highlight is the HALO system which replaces the conventional A-pillar on the vehicle. This element is a direct derivative of the premier class of motorsport and has been part of every Formula 1™ vehicle since 2018. It protects the driver's head in the event of an accident. The name HALO describes its shape. As in Formula 1™, the safety system in the Concept Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed consists of a bracket that is connected to the body of the vehicle. This aerodynamically optimised component serves to protect the occupants, just as in Formula 1™. Included are two aerodynamically optimised helmets specially designed and manufactured for the Concept Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed. The field of vision as in Formula 1™ thus becomes a reality for two people. Neither roof, windscreen nor side windows separate them from their surroundings. The interior adds further highlights, with its unique colour and equipment concept as well as a custom clock designed by IWC Schaffhausen on the dashboard.
Design inspired by the Mercedes-AMG ONE hypercar

The Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed concept is a true performance car with an extremely low silhouette. Many design features were inspired by the Mercedes‑AMG ONE hypercar – technical, sharply cut visible carbon fibre parts in the lower section of the vehicle provide a strong contrast to the sensual, rounded shapes of the upper part of the vehicle.

The design of the wheels is characterised by the unique carbon fibre cladding on the front and rear wheel covers. The rear wheel covers are completely closed to improve aerodynamics. The front wheel covers are open to optimise airflow at the front end for brake cooling and downforce.

Typical of a sports car are the long bonnet and the very low front end with a pronounced “shark nose”. The front design is similar to the Mercedes‑AMG ONE with a wide lower air intake with AMG lettering and a dark, chrome-plated Mercedes star on the soft nose. Added to this is the aerodynamically optimised, sportive bonnet with an additional air outlet. Small, transparent deflectors at the front and sides direct the wind over the cockpit.

The design team's precision work can also be seen in the side-sill panelling with aero flics. The muscular shoulders above the wide-track rear wheels merge into the elegant boot lid and the width-emphasising rear apron.
Homage to legendary Mercedes models

Many other design details also pay homage to motorsport. The two flying buttresses behind the seats are reminiscent of legendary racing cars such as the 300 SLR, in which Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson won the 1955 Mille Miglia in Italy – with a record average speed of an incredible 157 km/h on public roads.

The eye-catching paintwork – in a colour gradient from Le Mans red to graphite grey with a black AMG pattern – alludes to the colour scheme of the victorious Mercedes car at the 1924 Targa Florio race in Sicily. It was painted red, which was typically reserved for Italian vehicles. German race cars were traditionally painted white at the time. The red paint was meant to deter local fans from impeding the car’s progress in the race. The coup worked. After 6:32:37.4 hours and a race distance of 432 kilometers, the victorious Mercedes 2-litre race car with the number 10 crossed the finish line in first place with Christian Werner behind the wheel. The number 10 can also be found on the front wings of the Concept Mercedes‑AMG PureSpeed and refers to that Targa Florio victory 100 years ago.