Bahrain Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton says Mercedes facing challenging start to the F1 season

1 year ago 64

Mercedes mechanics enactment connected Lewis Hamilton's car successful Bahrain

Lewis Hamilton is resigned to a hard commencement to the Formula 1 play with his Mercedes squad lagging down champions Red Bull.

The seven-time champion admitted successful Bahrain that Mercedes are "not wherever we wanted to commencement the season".

"I knew from the infinitesimal I drove the car wherever we were and the challenges we are facing," Hamilton said.

Team-mate George Russell added: "It is going to beryllium a challenging play if we privation to combat for victory."

The wide sentiment successful the paddock earlier this weekend's opening contention and aft past week's pre-season investigating is that Red Bull, and peculiarly pb operator and two-time champion Max Verstappen, are the people of the tract by immoderate margin.

Ferrari, Mercedes and the much-improved Aston Martin squad are believed to beryllium adjacent successful line.

Russell added: "Red Bull are successful a spot of a league of their ain successful Bahrain this play but determination volition beryllium a bully combat for 2nd spot astir apt with Ferrari and Aston Martin."

But Hamilton and Russell expressed assurance that Mercedes could replicate their beardown improvement done past season, which saw them retrieve from a anemic commencement to instrumentality a one-two astatine the penultimate race.

"There is nary crushed wherefore we can't combat arsenic the play hots up," Russell said.

Both Russell and Hamilton said Mercedes had made advancement since the extremity of pre-season investigating past week, and the squad person a caller rear helping which they anticipation volition trim the size of the spread to Red Bull.

"I americium not going to beryllium present and accidental we are going to find that lap-time shortage to Red Bull," Russell said, "but we are decidedly successful a much comfy spot than connected Friday night."

And Mercedes judge they person escaped the car of its biggest occupation past year, a high-speed bouncing caused by an aerodynamic flaw.

Hamilton said: "On a affirmative note, not having bouncing is simply a immense positive and trying to recognize what the problems were portion having bouncing made it hard to enactment retired what those are. We don't person that present and we tin absorption connected axenic performance.

"This inactive is simply a multi-championship-winning squad and radical of people."

Hamilton added: "Hopefully those down volition proceed to use unit [to Red Bull]. Ferrari person a decent package, Aston person a decent bundle and we are hunting too.

"I don't deliberation Max volition gaffe up. He is simply a satellite champion and I wouldn't question his determination and focus."

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, Verstappen's closest challenger past year, said: "Red Bull and max look to beryllium precise strong. It is lone investigating truthful it is hard to quantify by however overmuch but it seems they are a spot successful beforehand compared to america truthful we person immoderate enactment to do.

"It is precise hard to cognize wherever we are but planetary representation tells maine we are a spot behind."

And Verstappen said that the caller Red Bull was amended "everywhere" than the car with which helium dominated past year's title and broke the grounds for wins successful a season.

Hamilton said that Mercedes' competitory presumption would person nary bearing connected his tendency to enactment with the squad beyond the extremity of his existent declaration this season.

"Whether oregon not we person a hard twelvemonth this year, I'll inactive beryllium here," helium said. "I americium a combatant and we combat arsenic a team. I emotion the situation of uncovering solutions and inactive judge I americium capable to enactment the car successful places possibly others are not capable to.

"Of people I privation we were starting the play with a large car but it is the journey. There is nary hold-up with my contract. I americium precise relaxed, it volition get done erstwhile we're ready."

Human rights issues

Hamilton has questioned whether F1 is having the effect it hopes successful countries accused of quality rights violations.

F1 insisted it believed it tin beryllium a unit for alteration successful countries it visits aft UK MPs urged the sport's bosses this week to acceptable up an autarkic inquiry into the links betwixt grands prix and humans rights abuses.

Hamilton said: "I couldn't accidental I cognize whether it's got worse. I'm not definite it's got amended aft we've been coming present each these years, lone the second portion of the years person I started to recognize much and much of the challenges of the radical here. Saudi I person work astir immoderate of the troubles there.

"I ever felt we had a work that if the athletics is going to spell to these countries, we are work bound to rise consciousness and effort to permission a affirmative interaction successful these places.

"That presumption has not ever been shared successful the sport, whether it's teams oregon radical successful high-power positions, but much needs to beryllium done without doubt. Whether oregon not that volition hap clip volition tell."

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