Mercedes’ dismal start to the 2024 campaign is now behind them, and the team is on a path to resurgence. This, however, is being led by George Russell who won the Silver Arrows’ first race of the season in Austria last weekend. Lewis Hamilton, although performing better, is still struggling to match Russell and after losing out on pole to him in Silverstone, the reason behind this gap has now surfaced.
Qualifying on Saturday was set in mixed conditions. Rain affected proceedings in several parts of the session, and Hamilton presumably missed out on using the DRS. The seven-time World Champion was just one-tenth of a second behind Russell on his final Q3 run. And out of the two DRS zones around Silverstone, Hamilton missed one according to his race engineer Peter Bonnington.
Had Hamilton got the DRS, he would have likely made up that time and finished P1 in qualifying in front of his home fans.
| Lewis Hamilton: “How far off?”
| Bono: “I’d say it’s just over a tenth. Most of that towards DRS ZONE.”
| Lewis Hamilton: “Second lap the tyres were too hot.”
| Bono: “Main loss is just the DRS that we missed.”
— deni (@fiagirly) July 6, 2024
Russell also took new engine components for the British GP, which bolstered his pace. It handed him an advantage over Hamilton, which he used to the full extent on Saturday.
Looking at the telemetry from the final Q3 laps, it can be seen that Russell is the quicker Mercedes driver down the straight. However, it can also be down to the setup and the wing levels.
Nonetheless, Russell and Hamilton will start from the front row and this is something that the Silver Arrows couldn’t have imagined a couple of months ago with upgrades in Monaco and Canada turning their season around.
At the same time, to hold on to 1-2 at the end of the British GP, both Mercedes drivers have to fend off McLaren and Red Bull’s threat.
Lewis Hamilton vigilant about Lando Norris and Max Verstappen’s threat
Mercedes qualified 1-2 in Silverstone, but McLaren’s Lando Norris was not too far behind. Norris, who was improving significantly on his final Q3 run made a small mistake, which forced him to abort the lap.
Max Verstappen meanwhile, went off into the gravel during Q1 which damaged his floor. Still, he got P4 at the end of the session, showing that the Red Bull has pace. As a result, Hamilton knows that Norris and Verstappen will give a tough challenge to Mercedes.
“These guys are still… Red Bull, particularly Max, and the McLarens are very, very, very fast”, said Hamilton according to Crash.net.
“And in some ways, you know, you saw in the last race. They were quite a bit ahead of us. So I’m hoping that tomorrow, with the conditions, we can hold our own.”
Weather and strategy will play an important role in deciding the race winner in Silverstone on Sunday. Nonetheless, it is expected to be an exciting race with Norris and Verstappen charging toward the Mercedes drivers for the win.
