Toto Wolff shares ‘unfortunate’ update on George Russell’s Mercedes for the Mexico City Grand Prix

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Mercedes have been in a bit of a league of their own throughout the Formula 1 season, and their constructors’ championship standing reflects that.

They’re miles ahead of fifth-placed Aston Martin, but a fair distance behind Ferrari for third, despite winning three races.

They blow hot and cold, and fans never really know what sort of car to expect from them when they turn up to race.

Their United States Grand Prix was pretty dismal by their standards, and now their Mexico City Grand Prix has started on the wrong foot too.

Mercedes driver George Russell ‘won’t have’ complete upgrade package in Mexico

Lewis Hamilton’s surprise early retirement in Austin showed just how unpredictable the W15 can be, even at the hands of a seasoned veteran and multiple world champion.

George Russell crashed out of qualifying, which caused some severe damage to his car and even prompted a pit lane start for Sunday’s race.

As a result, some of his upgrades are being sent back to England for repairs before the Mexico City Grand Prix, meaning that he will be running without them.

READ MORE: Damon Hill sends disappointed message to Fernando Alonso over Liam Lawson comments at US Grand Prix

“Unfortunately, we won’t have a complete upgrade package for George,” Toto Wolff told Auto Motor und Sport. “The underbody is missing, which will be sent back to Great Britain for repairs and will only be back in Brazil.

“We would have the full package for Lewis, but I’m not sure whether he wants to drive it again. We now have to think about how we want to approach next weekend.”

Why Mexico City should be Mercedes’ great Formula 1 leveller

The high altitude of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez means that the Formula 1 field is often spread by a very small margin around the circuit.

The combination of that with the short distance of the lap means that there are often intriguing fights for victory at the track.

Higher altitudes even the engine differential out between the teams, meaning that the likes of Mercedes and Alpine could be on for better weekends.

READ MORE: George Russell disagrees with Lewis Hamilton over cause of Mercedes spin at US Grand Prix

It’s also quite a layout which rewards well-balanced cars, with a mixture of high-speed, medium-speed and low-speed corners demanding a good setup.

The combination of these factors usually makes for great racing and means that Lewis Hamilton at the very least – who has the full upgrade complement in his arsenal, should be in contention for victory.