Mercedes drivers George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli faced tire degradation issues during Friday practice sessions in Malaysia, trailing top rivals in race simulations.

Mercedes introduced a major upgrade package for the W17 at the Bahrain Grand Prix, which is being held at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia due to the geopolitical situation in the Middle East. Despite these updates, drivers George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli reported dissatisfaction with car performance during Friday's practice sessions near Kuala Lumpur, specifically citing issues with Pirelli tire degradation.

Race Pace and Qualifying Performance

In long-run simulations, Mercedes recorded the slowest pace among the leading teams, averaging 0.18 seconds per lap behind Red Bull. Ferrari followed with a 0.04-second gap, while McLaren trailed Ferrari by 0.01 seconds, placing Mercedes fourth in race-pace rankings. Red Bull demonstrated the most consistent performance during these simulations. Conversely, single-lap performance data suggests Mercedes was the fastest, holding a 0.03-second advantage over Red Bull. However, both Russell and Antonelli finished seventh and eighth on Friday after making errors during their flying laps on soft tires. Max Verstappen did not perform a qualifying simulation during the second practice session, focusing instead on long runs.

Midfield and Backmarker Outlook

Alpine and Racing Bulls are expected to lead the midfield, followed by Audi, Haas, and Williams. Aston Martin showed strong single-lap speed, placing them ahead of Haas and Williams, though the team lagged in race simulations. Cadillac was the slowest team in both single-lap and long-run scenarios.