Last Updated on November 27 2023, 10:12 am
Lewis Hamilton was a shadow of his former self during the season finale in Abu Dhabi this weekend. The Mercedes driver trailed his team mate throughout each of the track sessions failing to make it into final qualifying on Saturday.
Starting the twilight race in P11, Hamilton struggled to improve and trailed home in just ninth place on the day that had been billed the battle of Ferrari and Mercedes.
Mercedes scrape home ahead of Ferrari
Fortunately for Lewis his team mate George Russell had been near the top of the timesheets for most of the weekend and his driver from fourth to third was enough for Mercedes to hold off the late season charge from Ferrari.
Since the Japanese Grand Prix, Hamilton scored just one podium over the final seven races of the year as a resurgent Ferrari closed a gap of around 60 points to just four before the lights went out in Abu Dhabi.
By way of contrast Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc had delivered two second place finishes and a third over the final four F1 events and only a car failure in Brazil prevented him from continuing that streak as his Ferrari failed on the formation lap meaning th erMonegasque driver ‘did not start’.
George Russell had lagged behind Hamilton all season in the head to head qualifying statistics, but over the closing races he clawed back the deficit bringing the scores level at 11-11 on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.
Hamilton late season los of form
Hamilton appeared distracted coming into the weekend as news emerged his representatives had approached Red Bull to enquire over a possible drive. Hamilton was forced to repeatedly deny the claims made by the Red Bull boss Christian Horner and the matter appeared to become one of integrity given Lewis had refuted claims during his negotiations with Mercedes he had spoken with any other team.
During the race Hamilton battled for lap after lap with Alonso before the craft Spaniard slowed to allow Lewis to pass hoping to regain his lead with DRS after the hairpin turn 5.
Lewis complained over the radio that Alonso had brake tested him and the stewards noted a possible infringement from the Aston Martin driver for “erratic driving”. This was quickly dismissed despite Hamilton’s loud complaints over the radio.
Such was the former world champions lack of pace, he failed to keep his position ahead of a feisty Yuki Tsunoda who breezed past him to retake the position finishing in P8 for AlphaTauri.
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Wolff required to motivate Lewis
The Japanese driver needed to finish in P6 to overhaul his team’s defect to Williams for seventh in the constructors’ championship.
Clearly Lewis’ team believed he had ‘given up the ghost’ as the unusual spectre of Toto Wolff came across the team radio repeatedly telling Lewis he was the fastest car over the previous lap.
After the event a despondent Hamilton spoke to Sky F1 and when asked what he could take form this season, the downbeat Hamilton replied:
“Not too much. It’s not been a great year in general. The fact I survived it. Probably that’s about it.”
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Hamilton despondent over 2024 chances
When asked whether or not Mercedes can fight Red Bull for the title in 2024 he continued: “At this moment, I don’t really know. For Red Bull to win by 17 seconds and they haven’t developed their car since August is definitely a concern.”
“We have learned a lot about the car and it’s just down to the team now. They know what they need to do. Whether or not we will get there, we will see.”
Lewis’ comments seem to imply there is still a debate within the Mercedes technical group over how to achieve the kind of feel within the car which Hamilton has repeatedly claimed is not there.
Earlier this year Hamilton claimed his seat position was far too forward and this didn’t give him the feel for the backend of the car he would like. Yet closer analysis from Gary Anderson suggested Hamilton’s discomfort is more to do with how ground effect cars work rather than a particular probing with the positioning of the driver within the W14 cockpit.
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Hill concerned over Hamilton’s attitude
Damon Hill who claimed the 1996 championship while battling with Michael Schumacher was concerned about Hamilton having heard his media debrief.
”I mean Lewis is often like that after a race that has not delivered what he wanted,” Hill explained after the chequered flag on Sunday. “George managed to get something out of this weekend, he had a difficult time. It’s been a long hard year, he’ll bounce back after that.”
Hill continued and but concerned over the lack of hope Hamilton had for the future and the confidence his team can return to winning ways.
“But the worrying thing is when Rachel [Brookes] asked him about hope on what’s coming, he wasn’t effervescent about it. I think on reflection I’m sure they will come back, they’ve got to have learnt something from the last two seasons.”
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Mercedes made little progress towards Red Bull
Hamilton trailed home 44 seconds behind race winner Max Verstappen and while his team mate was closer, the gap was still 20 seconds.
At the start of the season Lewis Hamilton was 51 seconds behind winner Max Verstappen at the opening round in Bahrain and while the W14 has improved and Mercedes finished three points ahead of Ferrari claiming second place in the constructors title, the gap to Red Bull as Lewis noted is still huge.
The changes from this season to next are the smallest for many years in terms of variables thatRed Bull can get wrong and others can gain from significantly.
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Pirelli tyres to stay the same for 2024
Not only are the car design regulations almost static but for the first time in memory, Formula One’s tyre provider will return with the same tyre construction that they finished the season with.
Red Bull have unlocked the Pirelli secret this year and consistently had by far the best tyre wear in the races, although they have been more vulnerable in warming up the tyres for the qualifying one lap shootouts.
Of further concern for Mercedes is the fact that McLaren have been the best team since Austria and only their truly woeful start of 17 points from them first 8 events prevented them from beating Ferrari and Mercedes with ease over the course of the entire year.
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Yep. Thats Lewis. If things don’t go his way, he doesn’t want to play anymore.
Proves Horner did a head job on him in 21 killed one of the greatest drivers in F1 and got away with it thanks to the FIA
Back when I began watching F1, some near on 50 years ago, drivers were considered the toughest humans in sport due to the dangers surrounding them. Their strength of mind was staggering, something that I have read about in general with any elite level sports person.
Felipe Massa was supposedly destroyed mentally by Alonso and so-called team-orders and we’ve had to endure “namby-pamby” BS ever since.
Give me a break. Can you imagine Mansell or Senna being ‘killed’ by their opposition. We’ve become too sensitive in the 21st century. everybody is concerned about Lando Norris every time he makes a mistake. Every one thinks Lewis has been hard done by because things haven’t gone his way.
He would have been mentally destroyed when men were men and they didn’t bitch about each other like school kids! As the years go by, I’m liking Max more and more because he’s proven honest and straightforward and doesn’t spout rhetoric that has journalists running for their tissues