Mercedes underperformed in Formula 1 qualifying for the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, which their team boss Toto Wolff described as "unpleasant and a real shame" for drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
There was a false glimmer of hope for Mercedes at the end of Q2 when Hamilton popped up to P3, only bettered by the pace-setting Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. The #44 car was only a tenth and a bit down on the top time, at that point.
But when all the 'firepower' was turned to the maximum, the reality check came as HAM was P7 and RUS in P9, their best effort half a second down on Verstappen's pole-position winning time.
Adding insult to injury was the fact that both McLarens will start ahead of them as will be the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso. A case of the customers bettering the suppliers.
The result of course hurt Wolff who summed up afterwards: "7th place, 9th place is unpleasant. If there's one positive, it's that Suzuka is the track that was probably one of our worst last year. And we're a tenth away from a solid position at the front. We'll take that with us.
"The result is a real shame and it's going to be really difficult in the race. Nevertheless, I see a tendency that what we tried worked," said the Mercedes boss.
Wolff: I don't think our car was that bad
The W15 continues to be a handful for the former World Champs, the 'Go-Fast' button still elusive after three years of the current F1 rules package.
But Wolff was reluctant to attribute blame: "I don't think our car was that bad. We tried something completely new. That brought us much closer to the top, in fact exactly half as close as last year. Much closer to McLaren. That's the positive thing.
"You can always do the maths: One tenth and you're on the second row of the grid. Is that good enough or not? I don't know. An unpleasant overall result. I can see something positive in the performance."
But that positivity was quashed when discussing race pace and where his team stand in the pecking order ahead of Sunday's 35th Grand Prix at Suzuka, Wolff said: "Exactly where we are. Unfortunately. As you can see, there's not much difference between the teams."
"Ferrari had the strongest long run. I think Leclerc will move up quite a bit. McLaren, on the other hand, didn't have such good long runs, Alonso had a not-so-good long run. But overtaking is difficult. It will all happen there in the pack," predicted Wolff.
Hamilton: I was overall much happier in the car than I have been this year
After the session, where Hamilton has won five times, he said of his last Qualifying as a Mercedes driver at Suzuka, he reported: "Qualifying was generally a really good session. I think we've made some good improvements to the car and its balance so far this weekend.
"I was overall much happier in the car than I have been this year, although there are clear areas of improvement. We have taken steps in the right direction though. When we raced here just six months ago, we were over one second adrift and we've closed that gap to the front a little, and to our nearest competitors.
"Of course, I was hoping for more and we are never going to be happy with P7, but we know our car is a work in progress," reckoned Hamilton in the Mercedes Qualifying report.
Of Sunday's Grand Prix, Hamilton said: "The race will be all about tyre degradation. Our long-run pace looked similar to others on Friday, so we will see if that is the case on Sunday. I think it will be very close tomorrow so I hope we can maximise all the various factors and take home some good points."
Russell: I made a mistake on my final lap
In the sister car, Russell was a quarter-of-a-second shy of his teammate, which dropped him a couple of rows and into the meat of the pack for the start on Sunday. He summed up: "It was so tight out there between ourselves, the McLarens, the Ferraris, and the Aston Martins.
"After FP3, we knew there would only be one-tenth or two between all those cars and so it proved. If you didn't do a great lap you would end up P9 and that is what happened with me today. I made a mistake on my final lap; it's a little bit disappointing but that is how it goes sometimes.
"It isn't the most difficult race to overtake at though, and with tyre degradation and different strategies, hopefully we can move forward tomorrow. A lot can certainly happen.
"We've started this season with several high-speed circuits. We know that is where our weakness is with this car, and we knew this weekend wouldn't be our best.
"It is good that we are exposing these weaknesses as it gives us an understanding of the platform we are building on and adding performance to. It sets a clear direction for us to improve," added Russell.
And improve substantially should they want to become podium challengers let alone winners. For now, Mercedes still seems lost with regard to their package. However, only time will tell if Wolff's words above - "Nevertheless, I see a tendency that what we tried worked" - will come true.
Big Question: What's gone wrong at Mercedes?
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