(Motorsport-Total.com) – The early retirement of George Russell at the Belgian Grand Prix was a big annoyance for the Mercedes driver, but a small stroke of luck for the competition: Because when the Briton’s W17 was lifted by the crane, it was the first time this year that there was a clear view of the new floor.
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For aerodynamicists, there are few sights more unpleasant than seeing their car hanging from a crane – apart from the fact that the driver cannot continue the practice or race. Because teams keep the design of their floor as secret as possible.
During driving or in the garage, most of the details remain hidden. However, if a car has to be recovered with a crane, the underside of the cars is often visible to everyone. A prominent example was Sergio Perez’s qualifying crash in Monaco 2023.
At that time, Red Bull dominated the ground-effect era, and the view of the RB19’s floor gave rival teams valuable clues as to why the car worked so efficiently. Although photos do not reveal all details to aerodynamicists, they can serve as a basis for simulations with similar concepts.
Although the floor is no longer as important this year because the aerodynamic rules have changed and the floor is overall somewhat less decisive for the performance of the cars, the exposed Mercedes floor at Spa provides interesting insights into the construction of the current top cars.
What are the most important elements of the Mercedes floor?
A close look at the rear of the current Mercedes of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli shows several distinctive components, some of which are already known from the past, but other details reveal interesting insights, especially about the airflow under the Mercedes.
Diffuser (1): It expands the airflow under the car and thus creates a low pressure. The air under the car is sucked into the diffuser, generating downforce.
Diffuser Kickline (2): From this point on, the floor does not have to be completely flat according to the regulations.
Plank/Skid Block (3): It consists of a resin material and prevents the cars from running too low. If it wears down by more than one millimeter during a race, disqualification threatens. As happened with McLaren last year in Las Vegas.
Outer floor edge (4): It is higher than the main part of the floor – a measure by the FIA to curb downforce.
Outer diffuser elements (5): They connect the aerodynamics at the wheel carriers with the diffuser.
Diffuser strakes (6): They serve to guide the airflow under the car in a targeted manner.
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Diffuser “hole” (7): An addition introduced this year to support the feeding of airflow into the entire diffuser.
Where the FIA demanded some changes from Mercedes
The images also show small tabs along the upper diffuser edge. Mercedes had originally used larger versions of these elements to enlarge the effective working area of the diffuser. However, the FIA forced the team to reduce these elements.
The suspension components and the beam wing in front of the diffuser are also angled accordingly. Together, they help to enlarge the low-pressure area behind the car. These components work aerodynamically closely with the rear wing to generate consistently high downforce on the rear axle.
The outer elements of the diffuser are basically a further development of the cascade wings attached to the brake ducts from last season and further enlarge the effective area of the diffuser.
New Formula 1 regulations allow additional opening
According to last year’s regulations, the diffuser had to be largely closed to disturb the flow structures under the car as little as possible. Because the cars in 2026 are less sensitive to flow separation, several teams have now integrated an additional “hole” in the diffuser.
This allows the air under the vehicle to expand more. At the same time, the inner elements of the diffuser practically take over the function of additional strakes and help to control the airflow in the rear area of the floor in a targeted manner.
Fight against flow separation
Given the large length of the floor, avoiding flow separation is one of the biggest challenges. The more energetic and faster the air flows under the car, the better the energy loss caused by surface friction can be compensated.
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At the same time, a targeted division of the body structure in the rear area helps to keep the airflow stable. Also visible are the slots at the rear corners of the floor just in front of the rear tires.
Mercedes already changed this area at the Canadian Grand Prix to better control the so-called “tyre squirt.” This is when the rotating and deforming rear tires push turbulent air sideways, which can enter the diffuser and impair its effect.
Stability at the rear axle is crucial
Although the current generation of cars is significantly less complex than its predecessors, there is still enormous development work in the diffuser. Because only an efficiently working diffuser ensures enough stability at the rear axle.
If this downforce is missing, the driver cannot cleanly transfer the engine power to the track when accelerating out of corners, and the car is more likely to slide. If the rear is unpredictable and does not offer a stable balance to the front, the driver loses confidence in the vehicle – and ultimately also performance.
Read more Formula 1 Technology: Mercedes Floor Unveiled After Russell’s Retirement in Spa