Russell calls for Mercedes setup changes after difficult Bahrain GP Friday

George Russell believes Mercedes needs to adjust its setup after a difficult Friday at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, with the team’s heavily upgraded W17 yet to deliver the pace he expected.

Tyre behaviour shapes Mercedes’ Friday

Malaysia is hosting the event in place of Bahrain, which cannot stage a round because of the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict. The return to the calendar has brought the field to Sepang for the first time since 2017, where high heat and humidity have made tyre management a central concern. Rain remains a threat, although it did not fall during Friday’s sessions.

“With these conditions tyre deg is huge for everybody and the cars are operating in a very different window,” Russell told F1 TV. “I think as a team we just haven't got the car quite where we need it to be and we need to make some set-up adjustments as we're a bit off the pace.”

FP2 may not give a complete picture of Mercedes’ qualifying potential: neither driver set a soft-tyre lap after separate errors in the final sector. That leaves room for improvement, but the team will need to make the most of it. Friday’s Sepang practice report details the contrasting results at the front of the field.

Upgrades still need to work in the conditions

Mercedes brought seven updated components to the W17, with changes focused mainly on the floor alongside revisions to the rear suspension, corner and bodywork. Russell said he could feel the added downforce in some corners, but argued that overheating and degradation were dominating the car’s behaviour.

“So we just need to get on top of that overnight. That's more of a set up rather than the upgrade itself and go from there,” he said.

The challenge is immediate: Russell is aiming for a sixth pole of the 2026 season, but Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari all appeared competitive against the championship-leading Mercedes. He singled out Verstappen’s speed and McLaren’s race pace, while keeping the possibility of a turnaround open: “Never say never.”