“It’s not been the easiest or smoothest running, we have some obstacles to overcome”: Seven-Time World Champion Lewis Hamilton speaks out on the W13’s performance and how changes have to be made ahead of the start of the season

Lewis Hamilton sparks doubt over the performance of the new Mercedes W13 ahead of the new season opener in Bahrain 

On the final day of testing, the seven time world champion completed 94 laps. He also ran through the artificial wet conditions. However, he expressed how more laps could have helped getting more data.

Lewis will be partner up with George Russell who overachieved with Williams racing. It will be fun to see if Russell will help Hamilton win the eighth championship or strive for his first.

The number 44 stated that the time has some obstacles to overcome before even the season has begun in Bahrain.

Is the Mercedes W13 underperforming?

Lewis Hamilton despite topping the standings after the testing session informed the media that the car is still not the easiest or smoothest while driving.

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Keeping in mind that there have been radical regulation changes, he stated: “The car is a lot different to drive than in previous years, as are the tires. We are working our way through our program.”

He also emphasized that as this is the first week of testing, it is really difficult to understand where Mercedes stands in the rankings.

Hamilton praises team hard work and shares the importance of data

The Briton also praised his team for their effort stating: “The whole team has done an amazing job this week. The men and women back at the factory have worked so hard.”

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Data is one of the most important resources in Formula 1. The teams spend most of their time understanding and making the right use of the intel provided by the cars.

“We’ve got a lot of data to go through from these three days,” Hamilton expresses the importance of utilizing the testing data.

More Simulation and Less Comparison, says Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton wants to bring out more from the W13. He expressed how different setups will have to be experimented with to bring the right results:

“We’ll just put one foot in front of the other and put in the work,” he said.

“It was good to get a feel for the different tire compounds. However, you never know where you are compared to the other teams on the first days of running,”  concluded the seven-times world champion.