**”Mercedes Acknowledge Struggles Despite Russell’s Fortunate Podium Finish in Baku”**

Mercedes admits “we aren’t deceiving ourselves” following “weak” performance confession

Andrew Shovlin examines Mercedes' challenges in Baku

Mercedes asserts that they will remain cautious despite George Russell's surprise third-place finish in Baku.

Russell was on track to secure a fifth-place finish at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix during a lackluster weekend for his Formula 1 team. However, a collision that took out Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz allowed him to clinch a third-place spot.

Earlier, he utilized hard tires to pass Max Verstappen.

Andrew Shovlin, the Trackside Engineering Director for Mercedes, stated that while it was satisfying to have a car finish on the podium, they remain realistic about their performance.

"We did not perform well this weekend and must make improvements. The initial phase for both drivers was subpar."

"We were unable to prevent the back tires from getting too hot, and there was a moment when it seemed we were facing a particularly challenging afternoon."

"The hard tires were a much better fit for our needs. George had a clear path to figure out how to optimize the tires' performance and keep them functioning effectively."

"His early strategy paid off later in the race. Although we fell behind the frontrunners initially, securing the overtake on Verstappen was vital and ultimately secured us a spot on the podium."

Lewis Hamilton's race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix never took off.

Starting from the pitlane due to new power unit components in his Mercedes, he managed to finish in ninth place.

"Lewis faced a challenging race because he repeatedly encountered DRS trains and was unable to pass them," Shovlin explained.

The nearer he approached the vehicles in front, the more his tires overheated.

“In any case, we lacked the strength to secure a podium finish based on performance alone, and that’s where we need to focus our efforts to improve.”

"Next week in Singapore presents a new challenge, but we are eager to return to the race."

Toto Wolff mentioned, "We can take away the positive aspect from today, which is that we managed to secure a podium finish with one of our cars."

"We noticed increasing aggression at the front, which eventually culminated in Sainz and Perez crashing into the wall."

Taking third place on the podium was beyond our expectations, but we recognize that our actual performance today was only good enough for fifth place.

"We will review the race and the entire weekend. The performance during the latter part of our race on the hard tires was promising."

George managed to regulate the temperatures effectively. By conserving his energy at the start of the stint, he was able to maintain an impressive speed towards the end.

"Lewis encountered challenges due to the traffic, but there were instances where he demonstrated impressive speed."

"We're off to Singapore next, and predicting performance there is challenging. We'll analyze the data from this weekend, work on enhancing the car's balance, and strive for a better outcome there."

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