George Russell puzzled by strange Mercedes behaviour in Australia practice

George Russell has explained his confusion at the strange behaviour of his Mercedes F1 car during Australian Grand Prix Friday practice.

Russell finished seventh and 10th in the two 60-minute sessions at Albert Park, respectively, but was eight-tenths slower than pace-setter Charles Leclerc during FP2. 

It was a scrappy day for the new Mercedes team leader, following a spin at Turn 4 late in FP1 after clipping the grass before skating wide at Turn 15 in the closing stages of FP2, although he was unscathed on both occasions.

The W16 machine looked strong on both the medium and hard Pirelli tyres, but Russell revealed a surprising fact: that the car had been quicker on those compounds than the C5 soft compound - something that puzzled him. 

"It really was an up and down day because every time we had the medium or hard tyre on, we right at the top of the time sheets and every lap felt good," Russell explained.

"We were faster on the hard than the soft, and put the soft on and didn't go much quicker, but there is clearly a bit of pace in the car, and it is just getting the most out of the tyre.

"So we need to understand why that is, and let's see what we can achieve overnight. 

"I mean, if the session stopped after the hard or medium tyre in FP1, I'd have definitely said: 'We are there or thereabouts', but you don't qualify on the hard or medium tyre, you qualify on the soft tyre.

"We don't seem so competitive on that one, but I am sure we can find improvements overnight."