Mercedes AMG Petronas
Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were left puzzled at the the W04's use of tyres following qualifying for the United States Grand Prix.
Hamilton, who has never been defeated in the USA, qualified in fifth place, while Rosberg was knocked out in Q2.
It represented Mercedes's worst qualifying result of the year.
"That was a really tricky session this afternoon so I have to be pleased with fifth place although, of course, I'd rather have been fighting for a position on the first two rows," said Hamilton.
"The car was quick out there and I had a good balance but we just couldn't get the tyres to work. The track was completely different from the final practice session this morning and it was really gusty round the back which affected our car quite a lot."
"In practice, the car has felt really strong this weekend so I hope we have a good set-up for tomorrow. I need to have a good start in the race and, if we can achieve that, then there is still a lot to play for."
Rosberg, who will start in 13th place, is hopeful that anticipated warmer conditions for the race will aid his cause.
"I had real problems getting my tyres into the right working window today and it's so disappointing to have not gone through to Q3," he said.
"It was all about finding the right compromise in the conditions which saw very hard tyres on a very soft track surface, and we saw a lot of surprises today as a result. Tomorrow should be warmer which will improve the situation for us but starting so far back is not ideal. We've worked a lot on our race pace so the car should be strong tomorrow and I'll be pushing really hard to move forward, overtake some guys and score good points."
