Mercedes admit W17 struggles as issues derail Bahrain winter testing

The opening day of testing for the German team saw George Russell take to the Bahrain International Circuit for the morning session, before Kimi Antonelli went out in the afternoon.

Russell's opening stint saw his start delayed before he got a 56-lap session done to finish P6, before a suspension issue interrupted Antonelli's nighttime running and only saw him complete 30 laps and finish P11.

"Monday has been difficult, especially compared to the near-perfect running that we had in Barcelona," Shovlin started by saying in a Mercedes press release after Monday's running.

Going into the second day of testing, Antonelli was slated to get behind the wheel for the morning session, while Russell would get some running done in the afternoon.

However, an engine issue meant the young Italian could only complete three laps before more problems hindered his testing, meaning the German team missed out on vital mileage and data collection in the morning.

"We're still learning how the W17 behaves and clearly have a bit of work to do to get in back in the right window," continued Shovlin after the first day.

The second of three days of testing will resume with the afternoon session, with four more hours of running to come after this morning's session. Night-time conditions will take centre stage, offering weather conditions that are more representative and closer to what teams will face later in the season on race weekend.