Mercedes ‘so confusing for everyone - including themselves’, says Martin Brundle

Hamilton finished on the podium for just the second time this season at the F1 Canadian Grand Prix, and George Russell was fourth, in Mercedes’ most encouraging day of an otherwise wretched campaign.

Ex-F1 driver Brundle wrote in his Sky Sports column: “The Mercedes team are so confusing for everyone at the moment, including themselves. 

“On Friday Lewis declared the car was undriveable, which is indeed exactly how it looked, and in a Sky F1 interview he strongly intimated that it was now about making the best of a bad job for the rest of the long season.

“Team boss Toto Wolff said similar things to me in an interview having described the car as a 's***box' just a week earlier."

Brundle: Mercedes could have finished fifth and sixth

“George Russell took a very bold gamble on slicks at the end of the final wet but drying qualifying session, which I suspect he wouldn't do again," Brundle said. "I admire his confidence but two or three parts of the track were still ten minutes away from being ready.

“Then in the race both Mercs were flying along almost on the leading pace. To be realistic, if Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez had had normal qualifying and race performances, and had we not had two virtual and then one actual safety car, it would likely have been a solid fifth and sixth for the Merc boys.

“However, once again there does appear to be a good car under that shrink-wrapped bodywork, and they fancy their chances at Silverstone which is next up.”

Mercedes vs Red Bull at Silverstone?

Max Verstappen, before winning last weekend in Montreal, emerged from a pitstop behind Hamilton in a brief but absorbing battle between them.

Hamilton said about his car’s porpoising ahead of the F1 British Grand Prix: “Max doesn’t know what I’m talking about but I know Carlos [Sainz] knows what I’m saying, so it will be interesting for us there.”