Mercedes issue defiant statement after lewis hamilton car questioned

Mercedes sparked mass debate among F1 circles this morning when Lewis Hamilton was captured with a never-seen-before attachment to his new W11. The six-time world champion was spotted

pushing and pulling his steering wheel to change the alignment of his tyres. When the driver-cam footage was broadcast on TV mechanics from every team crowded around their pit-lane monitors

in awe of the innovative technology. All of the different constructors’ employees were left scratching their heads at how and why the Silver Arrows were implementing such a devise. Pundits

on TV and supports on social media were unsure on the legality of Mercedes’ new trick, which they hope will give them the Championship advantage this season. The Silver Arrows’ technical

director James Allison felt the need to explain his team’s development midway through the second day of testing in Barcelona. "We would shed a great deal of more light than what you see

on the TV, but we have a system in the cars, a novel idea," Allison said. "We've got a name for it, it's called DAS [Dual Axis Steering]. It just introduces an extra

dimension to the steering and the driver that we hope will be useful during the year. "Precisely how we use it and why we use it, that's something that we will keep to

ourselves." When pressed on whether Mercedes were worried about being punished for potentially breaking the rules and regulations, Allison said: “Not really. "This isn't news

to the FIA. It’s something we have been talking to them about for some time. “The rules are pretty clear about what’s permitted on steering systems. We're confident that it matches all

of those requirements.” Hamilton racked up a mammoth 106 laps in the morning session - 29 more than the second highest, Romain Grosjean. However, the Brit was only able to set the seventh

quickest lap time, with Racing Point’s Sergio Perez leading the way. During lunch on the second day of testing, Hamilton explained how it felt driving with the new steering wheel.

"I've only had one morning with it so I don't really have a lot to talk about with it,” he said. “We're trying to understand it. Safety-wise, there was no problems today.

The FIA are okay with the projects. “For me, it's encouraging that the team is innovating and staying ahead of the game. That’s down to the great minds we have working at this team.”