Lewis Hamilton drove Mercedes' new F1 car, the W05, for the first time in Jerez, Spain on Tuesday January 28th.
The car had already been pushed to its limits by Nico Rosberg over a 40km test around Silverstone. A picture of the new car was tweeted as it was unveiled, revealing a special dedication to Michael Schumacher.
The retried driver, who won the F1 Championship seven times during his career, sustained head injuries whilst skiing in the French Alps on December 29th. He has been in an induced coma in the Alpine town of Grenoble, having been operated on twice.
#KeepFightingMichael was printed in black on the car's silver livery. The German drove for Mercedes from 2010 to 2012.
This year, the team is aiming to win their first constructor’s championship since 1955.
Mercedes' Paddy Lowe, who is heavily involved in chassis development at the team, said of the new car, "The whole team has done a fantastic job on the management of the project and its delivery."
"We have hit our milestones and hit our targets but, as ever, we will only begin to understand how successful we have been once we begin running in anger on track.”
"The new car is an elegant, but aggressive design, and, as is often the way, its beauty is much more than skin deep."
But with all the changes in the new car, we just hope the team has insurance for breakdowns taken out. However, the omens look good. Last year's season resulted in Mercedes being placed second in the Constructors’World Championship behind Austria's Red Bull, having won 3 races.
The 65th Formula One Championship will begin on the 16th of March in Melbourne, Australia, and finish in Abu Dhabi on November 23rd. The British Grand Prix will take place on July 6th.
For the 2014 season a 1.6L turbocharged V6 engine featuring energy recovery system will replace the 2.4L V8 configuration used from 2006-2013.
Breakdown Cover from 
