Lewis Hamilton has opened up on another design flaw with Mercedes’ 2023 car that has left himself and George Russell with a huge disadvantage compared to their F1 rivals. The Briton has been candid about the issues facing the team with their W14 car as they desperately try to make improvements and admitted he has “really struggled” to adapt to how their car operates on the track.
The seven-time world champion, who finished fifth in the opening two races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, has been far from his best pace so far this season with George Russell out-qualifying him in Jeddah and finishing ahead of him in fourth.
The Silver Arrows are a long way off having the pace to match Red Bull and even Aston Martin, who are powered by Mercedes’ engines but seem to have developed a much quicker car.
They already trail the Constructors’ champions by 49 points after just two races and are losing around a second a lap during races due to Red Bull’s significant straight-line speed.
And Hamilton has revealed more issues that have dogged him and Russell that their F1 colleagues do not have to face, speaking about how they are closer to the front wheels which can cause them issues.
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“I don’t know if people know, but we sit closer to the front wheels than all the other drivers,” Hamilton said at the drivers’ news conference on Thursday.
“Our cockpit is too close to the front. What that does is it really changes the attitude of the car and how you perceive its movement. It makes it harder to predict compared to when you’re further back and sitting more centred. It is just something I have really struggled with.
“There is a part of me that is just hopeful we find the trick and are straight on to the right track that is not far away from the others.”
The 38-year-old has cast a miserable figure when speaking about the team’s troubles and hit out at the team’s engineers for ignoring his advice on how to develop the car after almost sacrificing his quest for a victory last season to help develop their 2023 car.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has been working tirelessly to oversee major design changes to salvage their season after conceding the team had got it wrong, with minor upgrades brought to Jeddah and also this weekend’s race in Melbourne.
But there is a clear gulf between Mercedes and Red Bull, who are expected to dominate again this season as Max Verstappen chases a third consecutive world title, and it remains to be seen whether Hamilton’s engineers can fix their multitude of issues in time to make him competitive.