Mercedes believe they have a chance to rebound from their poor start to the season at this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The team’s drivers finished fifth and seventh in last weekend’s opening round at the Bahrain International Circuit. That came as a disappointment to the pair after they topped the opening day of practice in their new W15s.
However team principal Toto Wolff is confident of righting the problems they encountered last week.
“Our race in Bahrain was best described as underwhelming,” he said. “We were hopeful of a stronger showing after our performance in practice and qualifying.
“Both drivers were pleased with the balance earlier in the weekend, and the more stable platform provided by the W15. Unfortunately on Saturday evening, our cooling performance didn’t match our predictions.”
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were both instructed to ‘lift-and-coast’ to address the overheating, which further compromised the car’s performance.
“That forced us into management mode early on, which had the knock-on impact of reducing tyre temperatures below optimum,” Wolff continued. “That cost us the opportunity to show something closer to our true potential. It was a frustrating way to start the season but one we will learn from.”
Wolff believes the team have “an opportunity to take a step forward immediately” at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit this weekend. “We will be aiming for a more consistent weekend and to understand our true performance relative to the rest of the grid.”
Russell qualified third in Bahrain, three tenths of a second off pole-winner Max Verstappen, but slipped to fifth place at the chequered flag, 46 seconds in arrears. Hamilton finished a further three seconds behind having qualified ninth, his lowest grid position in a season-opener for Mercedes.
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2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
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