It could be permanent damage: from Mercedes they worry about the health of Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton he has been battling with the Mercedes car since the start of the season. After almost winning the eighth world title in 2021, the British rider was unable to return to his best level and is now fighting to get at least a third place. One of the big culprits that Hamilton hasn’t won in 13 races is porpoising. The rebound of the W-13 greatly harms the German team, but the most worrying thing is how it affects the health of the pilots. In that sense, Toto Wolff, head of Mercedes, asked the FIA for solutions.
According to a medical report carried out by the International Automobile Federation, the rebound like the one suffered by Lewis Hamilton in your car, it can cause severe brain damage. Experts indicate that a frequency of 1-2hz maintained for a few minutes generates such trauma. In this sense, Toto Wolff, head of the German team, explains that the porpoising of the seven-time world champion pilot reaches a frequency of 6-7hz and for hours.
Source: Fulex
“The FIA has commissioned medical work on porpoising. The doctors’ summary is that a frequency of 1-2Hz, sustained for a few minutes, can cause brain damage. We have 6-7Hz for several hours. So the answer is very easy: the FIA has to do something about it.” explained the boss of the team to which he belongs Lewis Hamilton.
did not disappear
Along the same lines, Toto Wolff referred to the 37-year-old’s porpoising decline in recent races in Great Britain, Austria and France. Far from forgetting about the problem, the Mercedes boss explained that the Silverstone, Paul Ricard and Red Bull Ring circuits are laid out with softer asphalt and are less prone to rebound.
“I still believe that there is no option for the FIA and for us to do something. I don’t want to have it at Spa, or at some of the last races where the asphalt is not as smooth as on a conventional circuit, and that we have not done anything and people say: ‘well, now it’s too late’. The argument is that we haven’t had any bounce in the last few races. But that doesn’t count because Silverstone, Paul Ricard and Austria are not exactly circuits to bounce on,” Toto concluded. .
