Mercedes explains W17 handling issues at Brazilian GP

Mercedes has explained why Kimi Antonelli and George Russell both felt their cars were "broken" during the Brazilian Grand Prix. The team said the W17 was running just below the tyre temperature window, which led to unusual car behaviour in the damp conditions at Interlagos.

Antonelli and Russell struggled in the damp, and Mercedes had no answer for Lando Norris or Red Bull on the day. Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord said both drivers were the fastest on track at points, including Antonelli on intermediates and Russell on the dry soft tyre, before problems set in.

Lord said the car was very tricky to drive, oversteery, with very low tyre temperatures on the soft tyre stint. The team believes the cars only briefly popped into the tyre window before dropping back out, which caused the strange behaviour.