Mercedes to run latest upgrade package on both cars at United States Grand Prix in Austin

Both Mercedes cars on latest specification in Austin

Mercedes-AMG Petronas has confirmed it will run its latest upgrade package on both cars at this weekend's United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas. Team principal Toto Wolff announced the plan in the team's official event preview: "Austin gives us an opportunity to respond. We will run our latest update package on both cars as we continue to develop the car. The field is incredibly close, so we need to keep moving forward if we want to fight consistently at the front in the closing stages of the season." ¹²

Sky Sports reported the confirmation ahead of the Austin weekend, noting that Antonelli and Russell will both run the latest-specification car. The announcement follows a split-specification approach in Singapore, where only Antonelli carried the upgraded package so the team could compare the two versions on track, with Russell reverting to the pre-Sepang specification. ²

In a further detail reported by GMM via Motorsport Nextgen-Auto, deputy team principal Bradley Lord confirmed both drivers are expected to run the updated package including the new front wing, saying: "We can hopefully hit the ground running in a better way when we get to Austin with both cars in the updated config and running the new front wing." ³

How the Singapore comparison shaped the decision

Mercedes introduced a new floor and bodywork package at Sepang, but it did not deliver the improvement the team expected, according to NXTbets' report on the upgrade programme. That led the team to run two different car specifications in Singapore and compare the old and new parts in back-to-back setups, with Wolff saying the car also required a different setup philosophy and had not yet produced the level of performance Mercedes wanted. ⁵

The Singapore weekend produced a mixed picture between the two drivers, as reported by NXTbets: Russell was quicker in the early Sprint sessions, while Antonelli was faster in qualifying and finished third in the Grand Prix, with Russell ninth. Wolff suggested after the race that the team were leaning towards running both cars on the new specification in Austin, per Sky Sports, and that plan has now been confirmed in the team's preview. ⁵²

Mercedes technical boss Simone Resta said on the Nu Silver Arrows Radio Show, as reported by GMM, that the team has now established the package does produce extra performance: "We have measured more downforce on the car. But perhaps we haven't delivered the same level of downforce in every single running point of the car on the track. But I think it has been clear enough to say to us that we measure more downforce." ³

Per NXTbets, Resta said the new package increased downforce but not evenly enough across the car, which hurt balance, and that the team had to recenter the operating window during a sprint weekend with limited running. NXTbets also reported the team wanted real-world data from the comparison and needed to study behaviours that did not match its simulations. ⁵

Why the Austin run matters beyond 2026

Wolff framed the upgrade as pointing the team in the right direction, but said the team still needed to understand the package's full potential because that would help shape development for its 2027 car, according to NXTbets. Carsfera reported the team is evaluating whether the concept introduced at Sepang could provide a starting point for the W18, its 2027 car, though those updates should not be considered a confirmed blueprint and further analysis is required. ⁵⁶

Running the same specification on both cars should provide a more complete comparison than the Singapore split, as Carsfera reported: engineers can examine data from both drivers and determine whether the findings from Singapore remain valid at another circuit. The Circuit of the Americas features significant elevation changes, slower corners and faster sections that will challenge the car's balance, Carsfera noted. ⁶

Championship picture: Antonelli's first title match point

Despite not challenging for victory in either Malaysia or Singapore, with Max Verstappen taking back-to-back wins for a resurgent Red Bull, Mercedes remain firmly on course to secure a world championship double this year with six rounds of the season left, according to Sky Sports. Antonelli could clinch his maiden Drivers' Championship as early as Sunday in Austin if he wins and team-mate Russell fails to finish in the top eight and Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton is not in the top four. ²

Mercedes' 134-point lead over Ferrari at the top of the Constructors' Championship means the team could clinch that title as early as next week's Mexico City Grand Prix, Sky Sports reported. Deputy team principal Bradley Lord played down the chance of Antonelli sealing the drivers' title this weekend, saying on the Nu Silver Arrows Radio Show, as reported by GMM: "I think there's something like a one in 25 chance of that being remotely possible in Austin." ²³

Wolff also urged caution, saying, per the GMM report: "If you look at the numbers and ask AI, 'What is the chance that he will win?', then it is probably almost 100 percent, but it remains motorsport. You can have bad luck, you can have accidents, and then the pressure can start to mount. So I think we have to take it race by race." ³

Off-track programme and race weekend

Wolff said Austin will also be an important weekend for the team off track, with commercial activities across the city centred on AMG and the MANUFAKTUR personalisation programme: "At the heart of that will be AMG and the MANUFAKTUR takeover, bringing to life the performance, craftsmanship and individuality of the wider Mercedes family throughout the weekend." ¹⁴

Sky Sports reported Mercedes will run a revised livery for the second time in three races in Austin, with blue added to the W17s to highlight the car company's MANUFAKTUR personalisation programme. The United States Grand Prix begins another demanding triple-header, with the race weekend starting with practice on Friday and qualifying on Saturday ahead of Sunday's Grand Prix, per Sky Sports' broadcast schedule. ²