Mercedes launch the 2015 W06 at Jerez

After releasing some official images and a short video from a shakedown day at Silverstone earlier this week, this morning saw the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team launched their 2015 car; the W06 just before the first pre-season test at Jerez.

Drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg revealed the seventh Silver Arrow to compete in the Formula One World Championship to the assembled media, with Rosberg then taking the wheel for the opening test session of the 2015 season at the Spanish circuit.

The Mercedes W06 is the car that most pundits and fans wanted to see as last season saw the Mercedes team claiming an unprecedented 11 one-two finishes as they secured the Constructors' Championship by a margin of almost 300 points while Lewis Hamilton edged out Nico Rosberg in the Mercedes team-mates' exclusive fight for the drivers' title.

But the 2015 season marks the beginning of an evolutionary process for the cutting-edge Hybrid racing formula introduced last season. The W06 is an evolutionary rather than revolutionary successor to the team's 2014 car – an understandable and logical philosophy following the team's record-breaking success in the first year of F1's new turbo era when the W05 proved to be the class of the field.

My first thoughts on the W06 is that the car looks really beautiful and the nose has evolved more than I thought it would over the winter compared to last season. It is clear that a lot of hard work as gone on behind the scenes to ensure that the W06 is a significant step forward for the 2015 season and that they are in the best position that they possibly can be at this stage.

In a statement made in the official press release of the W06 this morning, Head of Mercedes Benz Motorsport Toto Wolff has stated that even though Formula One has been quiet recently, a lot of work goes on behind the scenes to develop and evolve cars ready for the new season ahead. Wolff stated the following:-

'From outside, winter might look like a rest time in Formula One. But this couldn't be further from the truth. Long before the end of last season, development work on our 2015 car became the main priority. The winter months are the most intense, with everybody at Brackley and Brixworth working around the clock to prepare for the season ahead. Their dedication is inspiring.

'It would be so dangerous to rest on our laurels after 2014 – but none of us have any sense that things will be easier now. On the contrary, our motivation is as high as ever. There's a famous Babe Ruth quote I always say to people: “Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games”. We are fully aware that success is not only hard won but can also be short-lived without the right approach.

'A lot of things have been put in place – not by one individual but by many individuals working as a team. And this has been about taking the right decisions at the right time, trying to avoid mistakes and, if they do happen, quickly analysing why. Even if, on paper, things are looking good, we will not fall into the trap of being overly optimistic or trying to make crystal ball predictions because this is not how the sport works. In fact, this is possibly the most brutally honest sport because the stopwatch never lies.

'The launch of a new car is an exciting moment for everybody involved. To see the product of all that hard work turn a wheel for the first time is a great source of pride – and rightly so. However, there is a long road ahead before we reach the first race.

'We must build a fast, reliable racing car to be able to compete with rivals whose ability and competitiveness can never be underestimated. At this point, every team is on zero points. The only thing we know for sure is that we have consistency in our driver line-up for the third year running and they know what's expected of them, just as we know what they expect from us.

'We're looking forward to seeing them push each other and the team forward. It will be another fascinating battle between the two but we must wait until Melbourne until we know if we have provided them with a car that allows them to fight each other for wins.'

From what Wolff has stated in his interview today, it is clear that Mercedes are and have been working hard behind the scenes at their factory in Brackley to ensure that their car is as competitive and consistent as it can be before the start of the season in Melbourne next month. It is extremely nice for Wolff to acknowledge everyone who works hard in the factory on the car and puts in the hours for them to go racing.

As he rightly points out, the field is wide open at the moment and there are no guarantees that Mercedes will be the team to beat still this season even though the money is firmly on them to carry on where they left off last season. Wolff and the team understand that their rivals will have improved from last season and are not taking anything for granted this season in regards to how they will perform on the track.

But as Wolff says, their driver line up hasn't changed which not only brings consistency to the team but the team also have two talented drivers who not only bring expertise and experience from their careers in the sport to direct the team in terms of improving the W06 over the course of the season while fighting for the Drivers' Championship once more. But Mercedes just like the rest of the grid hope that the W06 can provide their drivers the opportunity to fight for the championship once again and retain both titles too.

With Mercedes undergoing an intensive design phase combining incremental gains and targeted innovation has produced the F1 W06 Hybrid, a car which delivers mechanical, structural, aerodynamic and weight saving developments over its predecessor, the F1 W05 Hybrid.

In a statement in the official press release this morning, Executive Technical Director Paddy Lowe has stated that expectations are high surrounding the Mercedes team and they cannot afford to rest on their laurels despite winning both the Drivers and Constructors Championships last season. Lowe stated the following:-

'The key factor from our perspective is avoiding complacency. Expectations are now high and a lot of assumptions are being made about our potential this season. Internally, however, we are fully aware that you can never afford to stand still in any sport – particularly Formula One.

'We are up against competitors with a great history of success and, like us, they will not be content unless they are winning. As the old motor racing adage goes, you are only as good as your last race. This time last year, with the new Hybrid technology yet to hit the track, we went to Silverstone for a filming day and were genuinely surprised to see the car drive out of the garage!

'Second time around we may be over the initial hurdles of the new formula but we keep them fresh in our minds, as it demonstrates that nothing can be taken for granted. The only thing that is in our control is the ability to do the very best we can in every area.

'Of course, like every other team on the grid, we have been pushing harder than ever to find areas for performance gains. But at the same time, we must ensure we are moving in the correct direction. One of the risks with car development is that attempting forward steps can easily turn into rearward steps. You have to take risks to progress – but those risks must be carefully managed in order to produce a car that is better than its predecessor. This has been an underlying theme for the team over the winter.

'It is an evolutionary process and this also includes the regulations themselves. Relative to last winter, these have remained reasonably stable into 2015. But this is certainly not to say that the cars we see take to the track in Jerez will be near-replicas of their predecessors. Some changes will be more visually obvious, of course, but the devil is in the detail.

'Beneath the covers there have been a raft of developments from both a chassis and Power Unit perspective – all aimed at creating a car that is safer, more efficient, more reliable and ultimately faster. 'With the Hybrid era still very much in its infancy, there is plenty of scope for innovation. The challenge at this stage is to find the key areas for performance gain based not just on what we have learned a year further down the line, but also on where there is room for exploring new and innovative sources of competitive advantage.'

As Lowe rightly says in his interview this morning, Mercedes cannot afford to rest on their laurels after winning both championships last season and they have to ensure that they once again build a competitive, consistent and reliable car that allows them to defend both of their titles this season.

Even though as Lowe points out that the expectations are high for the Mercedes team this season, he knows that their rivals will have also improved from last season and could be able to challenge them throughout the year. But Lowe makes a valid point, Mercedes have and will continue to push throughout the course of the season to be as competitive as they can be on the track and they have taken calculated risks to ensure that the W06 can achieve what the team want the car to achieve.

Lowe for me understands that even though many teams believe that they understand the V6 era more than they did last season, he still believes that there is still more for the Mercedes team to be learnt and also there is still scope for development and improvement still. However, he feels that this season their performance could be sealed by the tiny details on the W06 that will be continually developed and improved over the season as they start to get mileage under their belt.

But overall, it is clear that Mercedes just like everyone else has worked hard over the winter to put themselves in the best possible position for the first pre-season test in Jerez this weekend. Mercedes have worked hard over the winter and made some risks to the W06 that they feel is the next step from the W05 and hopefully will be able to defend their titles this season.

But Mercedes are realistic and expect their rivals to improve from last season and that they have will have to work hard once again if they want to win both championships this season. And with the personnel and the resources that Mercedes have at their disposal, there is no reason why this cannot be achieved.

While many pundits and fans of the sport have predicted the team's dominance will be tempered this year, the team are expected to lead the grid at the start of 2015 with the sport's regulations fundamentally unchanged between seasons. And you would be a fool not to discount Mercedes from picking up where it left off last season; but Mercedes do that and retain both of their titles? Only time will tell.

Sarah Jones