George Russell downbeat Mercedes upgrades with 'nothing substantial' coming any time soon

George Russell doesn't see any major upgrades on the horizon for Mercedes, suggesting their struggles on track are set to continue. The Silver Arrows have begun the season on the backfoot with neither Russell or Lewis Hamilton able to compete with Red Bull and Ferrari so far.

A two-week break between the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and the race in Melbourne was seen as a chance for Mercedes to make some changes to the W13. But it was a similar result last weekend with Mercedes running behind their two main rivals.

Their main concern so far has been keeping the midfield teams behind them with Alpine, McLaren and Alfa Romeo all running quick packages. Russell did manage to pick up his first podium of the season after benefitting from a Safety Car in Australia, along with Max Verstappen's retirement.

The 24-year-old paid credit to those working in Brackley and Brixworth to get him in a position to battle for a podium spot. But Russell isn't expecting any major upgrades to his car in the near future, indicating it will take at least a few more months for Mercedes to challenge near the front.

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"It's credit due to the team for giving us so far, a very reliable car and we've got to be there at the end to capitalise from these results," Russell said. "It's definitely not based on pace but I think it's been a respectable start to the season in terms of how we've managed to optimise our lack of performance.

"And I think every race we've done, we have truly maximised the result possible. I don't think we could have achieved a higher result at any of the circuits as a team and that is, I guess, a silver lining.

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"But unfortunately, there's nothing substantial in the