Merced☂es’ woes at not even being the team to “pick up scraps” from Red Bull have been debated.

A rar🃏e off-day from F1’s domꦜinant team last weekend at the Miami Grand Prix enabled McLaren’s Lando Norris to win his first-ever race.

Lewis Hamilton finished sixth, and George Russell eighth, behind 💛a McLaren, two Ferraris and two Red Bulls.

“They ar♒e going to be looking at McLaren’s step forward,” F1 Explains podcast presenter Christian Hewgill told the F1 Nation podcast.

“You’ve got to ൲pick up on scraps when you’re in an era of Red Bull domination.

“The꧅ scrap was: that Red Bull was tricky on📖 its balance.

“McLaren swooped in and picked up that scrap. [Mercedes] want that to𓆉 be them…

“They are not even behind the people who are picking up 🥃the scraps!

“I still think they 🌌wil♑l go away and say: ‘Two cars into Q3, bit more solidly into the points, but we’re not on the podium or winning’.

“I seꦇnse a real air of disappointme🃏nt around that team this season.

“Every year we come into presea𓆉son testing and think ‘they w🦩ill roar back’ but it doesn’t happen.”

The W15 - which promised much ꦿas a step forward compared to the bleak cars of the past two years - has not yet delivere🦩d.

“George and Lewis have said in the past it is even inconsistent lap to lap,” Hewgill continue❀d🍸.

“How it handles intไo one particular tu♚rn, at one particular track, can differ from one lap to the next.

“They seem unable to get to grips with it consistently. They wil🥂💜l be disappointed.”

Hamilton’s weekend was most notable for a✅ battle with Haas’ Kevin Magnussen.

Magnussen’s admission that he was driving tactically to help his teammate score points drew a respectﷺful r🅰eaction from Hamilton.

“They are 🀅often nice to each other in this paddock but I enjoyed th❀em going at it hammer and tong,” Hewgill said.

“We’re in🦹 an era where sometimes it’s best to let someone overtake you as it’s best not to ruin your tyres.

“So 🤪it was fantastic to see them battling. I enjoyed seeing Lewis do that.”

F1.com Editor Greg Stuart said: “I don’t think the team would deny that it was an off-colour performance. Geor﷽ge used the word ‘rubbish’.

“What Lewis loves doing is dominating a race from the front and showi▨ng everyone that he’s the GOAT, ✅he’s the best.

“But he also loves telling stories of karting🤪 of havinꦑg the cheapest, used tyres and beating rivals. He loved that.

“🐲He l🌱oved battling Nico Hulkenberg. At Turn 11 he was like ‘we will either have an aircraft-style crash or I will get by…’

“He enjoyed Kevin Magnussen’s integrity too, of admitting he played 🃏a tactical game.

“Lewis wants to w𒉰in championships and races but he was loving the situation he was i♔n.”