First Run of New Mercedes Silver Arrow Scheduled on Valentine’s Day
Giancarlo Perlas January 19, 2020We’re just a month away from the season-opener of Formula One in Australia, and the Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport team is already prepared to unleash their new Silver Arrow. The W11 will hit the track for the first time on February 14 during a private event without the press and spectators.
There’s no confirmation yet as to who will be behind the wheel of the new vehicle. However, it should be recalled that Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas have taken turns in Mercedes’ first drive events for its new cars.
The new Silver Arrow will be equipped with demonstration tires, and the test run is mileage-limited. The event will allow the team to perform “initial system checks” on their upcoming race car.
The launch of the next Mercedes F1 vehicle and the debut of AlphaTauri’s car—formerly Toro Rosso—will both happen on Valentine’s Day. Meanwhile, the fiercest rival of the three-pointed star marque, Ferrari, is set to unveil their unit on February 11.
The 2020 Australian Grand Prix will fall on March 15, but teams are already allowed to test their race cars as early as February 19 in Spain. The early launch of the W11 will let Mercedes utilize the whole testing phase of the season. The days for testing each team’s vehicles have gone down from eight to six compared to last the 2019 season.
There are 22 races scheduled for this season. The culmination of the series will once again take place in Abu Dhabi.