Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion, expressed his satisfaction with the progress of the Mercedes team and their development of the W14 car. With recent updates introduced at the Monaco Grand Prix, Mercedes achieved their best result of the year with a double podium finish at the Spanish Grand Prix. But the British driver admits defeat in the battle with Red Bull.
In Barcelona, Hamilton secured a second-place finish, trailing winner Max Verstappen by 25 seconds, while his teammate George Russell took third place.
Hamilton admits defeat against Red Bull
When asked if he believed that he and his team could match the performance of Max Verstappen and Red Bull this season, Hamilton responded, “With our current car, I don’t think we’ll be able to match their performance, but we are actively working on improving it.” The seven-time F1 world champion emphasized that there is still a significant amount of work, analysis, and progress to be made.
“Red Bull will undoubtedly make progress throughout the year, so we need to make substantial strides at every stage of our development,” Hamilton acknowledged.
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From P12 to the podium 🥉💪
The overtakes just kept coming for George Russell #SpanishGP @MercedesAMGF1 pic.twitter.com/cp3uIDvoSp
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 5, 2023
“At the Spanish Grand Prix, they seemed to have a slight advantage over us, perhaps half a second per lap, and the gap was even more noticeable in single lap exercises.”
“However, I believe we are moving in the right direction, and we have some promising developments in the pipeline. Hopefully, by the end of the year, we can challenge them. That would be great.”
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Focus now on next year’s car
Hamilton also mentioned that while his focus is on narrowing the gap to Red Bull during the 2023 season, he and the team are already looking ahead to the future, aiming to have a competitive car for the 2024 season.
“I’m more concerned with ensuring that we have a car capable of challenging them right from the start of next year,” the British driver explained.
“However, the more we push the limits of our current car this year, the more it will positively impact our preparations for 2024. Learning more about this car guides us in the right direction. We just need to find the right balance between this season and the future.”
Heading into the Canadian Grand Prix, the Mercedes team currently holds the second position in the Constructors’ World Championship, trailing Red Bull by 135 points.
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