Mercedes reveals 2021 Formula 1 car with new AMG livery

March 2nd 2021

Mercedes has released the first images of its 2021 F1 car, the W12

The first images of the Mercedes W12

@MercedesAMGF1

Mercedes has revealed its 2021 Formula 1 car ahead of its official launch later today.

The team has retained its black livery for the new season continuing on with its messages of anti-discrimination and anti-racism but also features much more prominent AMG branding as part of its new look.

After much conjecture, the team will race in 2021 with an unchanged line-up from last season, with both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas continuing on with the team on one-year deals.

The team says the Mercedes-AMG F1 W12 E Performance looks to build on the unprecedented success it has experienced in F1 to date, dominating the current generation of cars with seven consecutive world titles.

It will have a lot to live up to after its predecessors, with the Mercedes turbo hybrid fleet remaining undefeated in terms of championship successes since 2014, with the W11 helping the team to 13 race wins from the 17 possible last season.

W11 vs W12 comparison

Mercedes W11 W12 side by side — The 2020 car versus its successor

Though regulations have been kept relatively stable this season as a result of the impact of Covid-19, the team will be wary of the threat posed by Red Bull. Mercedes was beaten on pace in the final race of the 2020 season in Abu Dhabi, but its rivals have shown promise that turned into a false dawn before.

“We identified three main areas to work on: first, we’ve continued the development of the technology in the Power Unit,” Mercedes Managing Director of Powertrains Hywel Thomas said.

“That’s a continuous process, and we feel like we’ve been able to take a step forward on that front again this year. The second area is reliability. We discovered some design issues last year, so we’ve been looking at those and introduced some changes to address them.

“We’ve also got some completely new innovations that will be in the racing PU for the first time. That was particularly challenging because last season finished late, so the winter period has been shorter than normal and has given us less time to prepare, which put extra strain on the business.”