Listen to this article Mercedes continued its difficult start to the new season as George Russell finished fifth at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, while teammate Lewis Hamilton recovered from his first Q1 knockout in over four years to score a point for P10. After crossing the line for 10th, Hamilton asked Mercedes engineer Pete Bonnington if there was “even a point for that position”. The seven-time world champion said after the race Mercedes was “still far off” Red Bull and Ferrari, who locked out the top four positions in both qualifying and the race. Mercedes F1 chief Wolff admitted after the race that while the lead fight between Red Bull and Ferrari was good news for F1 as a whole, to not be part of it after winning eight consecutive constructors’ titles was difficult for the team. “We were right in the middle of those fun games in the front, and talking as an F1 stakeholder and benefiting from a great show, that is really spectacular to look at,” Wolff said. “But on the other side, it is extremely painful to be not part of those …