Aston Martin began the 2023 F1 season with a bang when Fernando Alonso claimed three back-to-back podiums. This prompted multiple entities in F1 to come out and say that the British team copied Red Bull’s car. Christian Horner was one of them. However, things didn’t work out for Aston Martin in the latter half of the season and it was all misery for Alonso. Now, Lewis Hamilton pointed this out to warn Mercedes ahead of their 2024 development.
Hamilton said in a report published by Motorsport Week, “The thing is, with the timeline you have and the limited resources you have at your disposal, you can’t just throw everything away and start from scratch. You can’t copy a car and build on it. Look at the Aston Martins.”
“What an incredible season we had.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves, Fernando.
x @F1 | #AbuDhabiGP pic.twitter.com/xboeOwW59c
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) November 29, 2023
Despite starting the year off brilliantly, Alonso and his team fell back massively. Once regarded as the second-best team on the grid, they went on to finish the season in P5 behind Red Bull, Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren.
On the other hand, Mercedes had constant results throughout the season except for some difficulties in their consistency and straight-line speed. Therefore, they were able to find instant results and hold on to their P2 in the Constructors’ championship.
How is Mercedes trying to get back on top for the 2024 F1 season?
Mercedes took only one win in 44 races throughout two seasons. This was a drastic dip when compared to their glory days from 2014 to 2021. Therefore, the Silver Arrows are desperate to try to improve in the upcoming season.
As Toto Wolff brought back James Allison to replace Mike Elliott already, he expects the team to start developing the car better than ever. However, he also warned the fans not to expect so much given they are way behind the leaders Red Bull.
Thanks for all the love this season. Til next year ~ pic.twitter.com/Ijg851dfzg
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) November 27, 2023
Speaking about this, Wolff said to PlanetF1, “I mean, literally, there’s almost every component [airflow, chassis, weight distribution] that’s being changed because only by doing that, I think we have a chance. We could get it wrong also. So, between not gaining what we expect, catching up and making a big step, and competing in the front, everything is possible.”
However, Hamilton believes otherwise as he looks to be impressed with the wind tunnel data of the W15. His teammate George Russell also believes the same as he shared positive feedback after driving the car on the simulator.
Hamilton, on this, said to Motorsport after checking out the wind tunnel, “I have full faith in everyone that’s working on it. And I’m hopeful that we will be in a much more competitive position next year.” Nevertheless, Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton are less likely to compete with Red Bull as early as 2024 because of the massive advantage Christian Horner’s team already has.
