A PR game or is it really on the back foot?

Its well-managed art of keeping a check on expectations means it has typically never been too bullish about its prospects, even when it has had by far the best car on the grid.

But the tone surrounding the launch of its new W14 seemed a departure from the past, as there was a greater sense of caution that seemed to solidify rumours its performance may not be as good as some of its fans may have hoped for.

There have been some whispers that Mercedes’ wind tunnel figures have not hit targets, and the fact that boss Toto Wolff admitted the W14’s unique sidepod solution was being changed early in the campaign suggested its launch-spec car was not where the team wanted it to be.

Adding to the sense that Mercedes could be set for a slow start to the season was Wolff’s language choice in its launch press release.

He was open that Mercedes was playing “catch-up”, but it was his use of the word “eventually” in a sentence later on that stood out.

“I see so much effort, motivation, and energy in the organisation to launch a car that will eventually be competitive enough to fight at the very front of the grid,” he said.

That sounds almost like the team accepted it was not capable of fighting at the very front right now.

Cautious Hamilton

For all the bullishness that both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell showed about their own personal fitness and mental strength ahead of 2023, their chatter about car performance was especially toned down too.

In fact, Hamilton already appeared to be mindful of the ability of the team to recover.

“I wouldn’t say I’m bullish like I was last year,” he said about his thoughts for the season ahead.

“I would say just more cautious. I know that whatever we’re faced with, we have the best team to deal with whatever we come across.

“Hopefully, we hit the ground running, but it’s not always the case. And I think we showed last year that, whatever we’re faced with, we can recover. So, that’s what we’ll try and do this year.”

Wolff was specifically asked about his use of the word “eventually”, and whether there was genuine worry about not starting the season in as good a shape as possible.

He suggested that the word had been a subject of debate, but reckoned it fitted best the mindset of the squad after the disappointment of 2022.

“When we talked about the press release, on one side you want to say ‘we will be competitive’, but on the other side, you need to stay…