Sir Lewis Hamilton recently turned 39. He has been waiting for a long time to get to his 104th Grand Prix win. His 103rd win came in the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. For two years straight, the most decorated F1 racer has been winless. But it’s not his fault, as Mercedes failed to provide a car that can beat Red Bull in the past couple of years. Moreover, other than a few P2 finishes, there was nothing really to celebrate for the German outfit in 2023.
However, Lewis Hamilton did secure his 104th pole position in the Hungarian Grand Prix. But on the final race day, it was again the same name that has been dominating the grid since the 2021 title success. Clearly, Hamilton is eager to challenge Max Verstappen and win back the title he has won seven times earlier. Now, the question remains: What will Mercedes come up with this year?
Lewis Hamilton Has Faith In W15’s Prospect
The seven-time champion believes Mercedes engineers can build a competitive car in F1 2024. He is liking what he’s seeing in the wind tunnel numbers. Recently, in an interview, Lewis Hamilton mentioned that it sure is difficult as he’s not an engineer or designer to get things right. He feels it is an exciting time of the year as he has seen the car in the wind tunnel. Moreover, the Briton believes it is a different animal altogether. Hamilton mentioned he likes seeing the car in its evolving stage and whatever direction it’s going. Moreover, Hamilton mentioned he thanked everyone for the amazing work they’ve done last year.
But he expects to see his team in a much more competitive position this year. Hamilton said the mood was generally positive at the end of the last year. The team feels satisfactory to finish second given the kind of car they were dealing with last year. Moreover, Lewis Hamilton says what’s more pleasing and emotional for him to see is how big the team is that’s pushing him forward. The team is getting more diverse, and that’s something he’s very proud of. He has been with this team for a long time, and he feels great to see the team moving in the right direction.
W14 In 2023 Was Worse Than 2022’s W13
On the other hand, the Austrian outfit went on to dominate the grid for two years straight. But Mercedes managed to win a single race that came in Sao Paolo, Brazil in 2022. Last year, Mercedes stayed winless. They just made a sister of the bad W13 car for the previous season, as Hamilton likes to put it. Hence, at 39, it has been a lot of pressure on the old horse to get back to winning ways.
But Lewis Hamilton is still giving his best to get the best out of the car that his team provided him. In 2022, the biggest shock was his new teammate George Russell was able to perform better than the seven-time champion. But last year, Russell could not live up to the expectations, and Hamilton was clearly the better of the two.
