Mercedes' George Russell secured a podium finish in Australia after capitalising on Oscar Piastri’s spin on Lap 44, while rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli delivered an impressive comeback drive, climbing from 16th to fourth on his Formula 1 debut.

However, despite the strong performances from both Mercedes drivers, the team still faces significant challenges compared to its rivals. Team principal Toto Wolff highlighted tyre management as a key area where Mercedes is struggling. According to him, McLaren’s drivers have a clear advantage in getting their tyres into the optimal operating window much faster and more efficiently.

In contrast, Mercedes’ tyres suffer from overheating, causing a rapid loss of grip and making it difficult to maintain a competitive pace. Wolff also acknowledged Red Bull Racing as another major rival in their fight for the championship.

With Piastri slipping back to finish ninth, Mercedes and McLaren ended the opening race tied on 27 points in the standings. While Wolff was reasonably satisfied with the team’s performance, he admitted that Mercedes needs to better understand how McLaren manages its tyres if they are to mount a title challenge.

“I think, yeah, P3, P5. So that’s the result. If you look at the real pace today, the pace result would be P4, P5. And I think it’s a solid first weekend,” Wolff, quoted by GPblog, reflected.

“But looking at it always from the glass half-empty side, you have to say that the pace of the McLaren is just very strong. Something we need to understand is the way they are able to manage the tyres and extract performance from them.

“Yeah, we just need to get better. If we want to fight on merit for race victories and for a championship, there’s definitely something we need to improve.”

Red Bull’s motorsport advisor Helmut Marko also pointed out McLaren’s superior tyre management, admitting that Red Bull needs to improve in this area as well.