P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Mercedes made progress with its 2024 Formula 1 car which was masked due to an “atrocious” first stint at the
Following the incident between Alex Albon and Daniel Ricciardo on the first lap, Mercedes switched Lewis Hamilton and George Russell to Hard tyres but they fell behind and had to switch to a two-stop strategy using Medium compound tires. George Russell passed Oscar Piastri to finish in 7th place, while Lewis Hamilton finished in 9th. Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, believes Mercedes was more competitive despite the final race results showing 7th and 9th place. Wolff mentioned that even though they were not satisfied with the outcome, they have made progress in understanding and running the car in a better way. He attributed their challenges in the race not to the track temperature but to their strategy calls and management of the tires. Mercedes is currently in fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship, trailing behind McLaren and Ferrari, but Wolff remains optimistic about the team’s potential to improve and compete with them in the future.
