How did Antonelli's spin into the gravel trap highlight the vulnerability of current F1 cars?

Following a difficult qualifying session for Mercedes, the Brackley-based outfit's trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin has revealed how much damage Andrea Kimi Antonelli's car suffered as a result of his trip through the gravel trap and how it also impacted on George Russell's W16.
Mercedes opted to use the Hard compound tyre in the sole free practice session on this Sprint weekend, followed by a short single lap run on the Medium.
Having finished that session in P4 and P6 respectively, the Brackley-based outfit had hoped to be fighting for the front rows of the grid in the sprint qualifying for the Spa F1 Sprint.
However, things evolved very differently in late afternoon in Belgium. Kimi Antonelli spun on his first effort in SQ1 and picked up sizeable floor damage which, whilst he was still able to complete a second effort, left him lacking performance and in P20.
George Russell was able to progress to SQ2 but on his solitary effort in that 10-minute segment was unable to extract the necessary performance and finished in P13.
Reflecting on Mercedes' qualifying performance, trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin has opened up about the extent of damage Antonelli's trip through the gravel trap caused to his car.
"By anyone’s standards, today was a disappointment. We opted to run the Hard compound for the majority of FP1 and, when we switched to the Medium tyre for a short run at the end of the session, both drivers were relatively happy with the car’s performance. Whilst others had taken the Soft tyre, we looked to be within reach of our usual competitors.
"Unfortunately, Kimi’s spin on his first lap of the session caused damage to the floor and diffuser. He got the car back on track and tried a second effort, but the damage was so bad he couldn't set a competitive time. George was running not too far behind Kimi as he spun and suffered some floor damage and gravel rash himself.
"That was likely a contributing factor in our disappointing performance in SQ2, although we will look to see if there is anything we could have done differently to extract more pace despite that.
"It will be challenging to score any meaningful points in tomorrow’s Sprint so our focus is on ensuring we get the car into a good window for Qualifying and Sunday’s Grand Prix," noted Shovlin.