Mercedes winning in Bahrain ‘a stretch’, admits Russell

Mercedes are hoping to bounce back from a disappointing 2022 season and return to title contention this year with their modified W14. 

After a day-and-a-half of pre-season testing, Russell is convinced Red Bull remain the team to beat and effectively ruled Mercedes out of a victory fight at the first race in Bahrain. 

"We definitely believe eventually we will have a car capable of getting in that fight,” Russell said. 

"Whether we're going to have that next weekend in Bahrain, I think may be a bit of a stretch.

"They [Red Bull] look very strong, very stable. The car is looking really strong and obviously Max is performing really well.

"So I think realistically, it will be a stretch for next week. 

“But there's no reason why eventually we can't get there at some point this year, and we've always seen the strength of Mercedes and their development rates. So yeah, definitely, the belief is there.” 

Unlike their W13, Mercedes say their 2023 car has “no bouncing” issues but have urged caution about their chances heading into the new campaign.

“Comparing to this time 12 months ago, things are running a lot smoother,” Russell explained. 

“When we were here last year there were a lot of alarm bells ringing with the porpoising. We were unsure how to solve it were a bit lost and the car characteristics were not good. 

“For sure we’ve got things to improve with the car, but I would say, generally speaking, we are roughly where we would have expected to be at this time of year.” 

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff said the team “are still hiding a little bit” when it comes to outright performance but revealed both Russell and teammate Lewis Hamilton have been struggling with car balance so far. 

"The entry phase [to the corner] has been improved," Russell said. "It's no secret when you're watching the onboards and videos that we are struggling a little bit with the balance, struggling a lot in the mid-corner.

"But I think it's a balance that is probably easier to solve than we had last year. So even though it's still a limitation, I think it's a good problem to have."