Mercedes’ strategy at Suzuka ♊came under scrutiny but they have been reminded that they must face eveꦐn bigger problems.

Mercedes’ decision to equip Lewis Hamilton and George Russell with hard tyres a𒅌t th🅺e restart after a red flag at the F1 Japanese Grand Prix failed to yield results.

Hamilton fin🌟ished ninth, Russell seven𓂃th, behind a Red Bull 1-2 and both Ferraris among others.

Red Bull and Ferrari opted for a di🐎fferent strategy to Mercedes.

Hamilton questioned the strategy via team radio dur🥂ing the race before later insist🌌ing his team couldn’t have done anything differently.

But Mark Webber has reminded them that tyre strategy is the least of their conc𒆙erns.

“They rolled the dice,” Webber said to Channel 4 after the Japanese Gra༺nd Prix.

“They restarted on🌺 the hards. They were looking at making a one-stop work.

“Failed. Too optimistic.

“𝓡Then, track position. They had to come back through.

“Then both of them put the mediums on, at theꦦ end. So they converted to a [two-stop] there.

“They tried, and they went all-in ꧅with both cars too, off the line with that hard tyre.

“They haven’t got the speed at the moment. They just haven🌠’t got t✅he speed.

“You can d💝o whatever strategy you want. But if you haven❀’t got a quick car? Good luck.”

The🎐 W15 gave Hamilton a rare good feeling at the start of the weekend in Japan yet Mercedes are still no closer to significantly challengi💜ng the Red Bulls.

Hamilton 🎶insisted he wouldn’t have fought gained anything with an alꦡternate tyre strategy.

“Nothing, I don’t think,” he said. “I d𒁃on’t know what the different strategy would💖 have been.

“Whether it was the mediums to start with? But we still had two terrible hard tyres to run through. It was a𒆙 real challenge.”

Red Bull’s Christian Horner insisted that 🎃tyre strategy was not crucial in Japan.

“I don’t think there was much in it,” he said.

“The tಌrack was warmer today, that brought the cars into a different oper💮ating window.

“The circuit just ✨gets faster and faster throughout the race.”