A new floor has been brought to the W14 - and will again be run this weekend at the F1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil.

It has added a🐻 glimmer of optimism at the scene of Mercedes’ last F1 win - via George Russell a year ago - and given them hope for 2024.

Th♎e exit of chief technica🐷l director Mike Elliott from Mercedes earlier this week (Allison will again resume that job) is another indicator at a major change of thinking ahead of next season.

Allison has regularly been lauded as oneꦕ of the brightest minds in Form🦂ula 1.

Crofty explained why Mercedes are optimistic with their recent development: 🅘“It’🌟s not so much a car that can catch Red Bull. No team is going to know whether they’ve got that, or not, until we go testing in Bahrain at the end of February.

“It’s a confidence that the direction is right, that the technical department is fully align🤪ed and working in tandem - chassis and aero, with each other.

“I think the fact that James Allison has come back and taken a more keen interest, after moving away a little bit at the start of the sea🐲son, and replacinꦅg Mike Elliott as technical director before he departed, I think that has gone down very well with Lewis Hamilton.

“It just feels a lot more confident that the team have got a handle of where they went wrong, and how they’re going to put it rigওht.

“Lewis has been quoted in the past saying ‘the ♌quicker you can identify a problem, the faster you can fi🔯nd a solution’.

“That’s what Mercedeಞs seem to have done - found a solution to their early-season problems.

“We’ve seen that 🅠borne out in their recent performances oꦑn the track.

“It’s no♔t so much catching Red Bull, but it’s providing a platform with whic🐠h to go and do business.

“That’s what’s making Lewis Ha🤡milton happ𒀰y at the moment.”