As the Bahrain Grand Prix unfolded and George Russell raced in second place, messages slowly came through on his radio that different systems were failing. Team principal Toto Wolff put it simply: “The car was wounded.

F1 analyst Peter Windsor believes that George Russell's P2 at the Bahrain Grand Prix was "one of the best drives" he had seen "for a long time". The Mercedes drivers finished behind Oscar Piastri, but a brilliant drive while dealing with all sorts of issues,

Mercedes enjoyed a strong qualifying session Saturday at the Bahrain Grand Prix, as George Russell finished second and young teammate Kimi Antonelli finished fourth. But neither driver will be starting there.