Mercedes hasn't solved porpoising problem yet: 'We're not there yet'

George Russell drove to a podium finish at the Spanish Grand Prix and Lewis Hamilton fought his way back to fifth place from the back of the grid with impressive pace. So the joy is great at Mercedes, which after five tough races finally seems to understand the W13. However, the team is not there yet.

Mercedes comes back

''We have one race out of the six where the car has been well behaved. It was a proper racing car, for the first time we could play with the setup and the car responded in a way that was predictable. That could not be said of the car we had during the first five races," said Mercedes' Motorsport Strategy Director in the F1 Race Debrief of the German team.

''We have to temper our expectations. It was only at one track and a track that has suited our car for years. There is a lot for us to understand, so it would be wrong to say the porpoising issue is gone. What I can say is that we have taken a step in our understanding and deployment of what we put on track," concludes the top executive of the German racing stable.

For Mercedes there is still a long way to go, because the championship gap to Red Bull Racing (75 points) and Ferrari (49 points) has already increased significantly. Among the drivers, George Russell is still in the best position with 74 points, compared to Lewis Hamilton's 46 points. However, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc are already way ahead with 110 and 104 points, respectively.