Canada marks the perfect point in which to introduce an upgraded power unit for Mercedes, but that won’t be the case as the German marque has decided against dipping into its seven development tokens.
With just four engines to last 19 rounds, each must complete around five races. Canda is the seventh race on the calendar and a power hungry circuit, therefore any gains in performance translate to huge laptime improvements.
DEVELOPMENT TOKENS: WHO HAS WHAT?
Renault: 12, Ferrari: 10, Honda: 9, Mercedes: 7
Tokens can be spent on performance upgrades, whilst reilability can be improved upon freely. Though any changes must first be approved by the FIA following a rule change last week.
However Mercedes have elected against using its tokens and chosen to instead focus on reliability, despite suffering just one failure across eight cars.
It’s a decision which will disappoint Lotus CEO Matthew Carter who believed an upgraded engine was on its way, telling Sky Sports: “It is a new engine and an upgrade as well,” he said earlier this week. “I think they may have [used tokens], we definitely have an upgraded engine.”
That however isn’t the case, with the team confirming plans to use its tokens later in the year when it introduces engines three and four around the Italian and United States grands prix if all goes to plan.
Rival manufacturers Ferrari, Renault and Honda are also focussing on reliability, with none of the three planning performance steps next weekend.
