Wolff: Mercedes 'not in a good place' with F1 tyres

Mercedes is currently "not in a good place" trying to manage tyres with its W09 Formula 1 car according to team boss Toto Wolff after ranging between running too hot and too cold over the Chinese Grand Prix weekend.

Mercedes failed to challenge for pole position during last Saturday's qualifying session in Shanghai as cool track conditions prevented drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas from getting their compounds up to temperature.

While Bottas was able to lead for the majority of the race on Sunday and put himself in the frame for victory, he struggled with overheating tyres that ultimately left him a sitting duck as Daniel Ricciardo passed to take victory for Red Bull.

Wolff conceded after the race that Mercedes was struggling to understand its tyre woes, but expressed his confidence in the team to fight back and recover after going on its longest winless streak since the start of 2014.

"We were overheating the tyres, so we are not in a good place. We are bouncing between freezing and overheating," Wolff said.

"In Formula 1 there is never a quick fix, but you can see how fast the picture can change in testing and in Melbourne, people predicted that we would run away with the championship because the car was so dominant. Here we go, three races in, and we are not.

"This is in my opinion a great group of people. We just need to stick our heads together, stay calm, get the head down and come up with some solutions.

"I have huge confidence in the team, they’ve proved that in the past."