Lewis Hamilton finished fifth in the qualifying on Saturday and he feels moderately satisfied with what he could offer on the track.
After the free practice sessions, Lewis Hamilton said that his new car was not yet in a competitive stage. But Mercedes is known for its history of sandbagging and therefore, nobody wanted to believe him.
However, the effects of the porpoising issue were clearly visible on Hamilton’s car during the free practice session on Friday.
In Saturday’s qualifying race, Hamilton struggled again and could only set the fastest time enough for fifth place. But he was said that he was happy with his position given how the team had performed in the past few days.
He said, “I’m genuinely really happy with today. Given where we’ve been the last two weeks, it’s been a nightmare to drive but we’ve kept our heads down.”
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Lewis Hamilton is proud of his team
Furthermore, Hamilton said that he is proud of his team as they have remained positive despite the setbacks.
Ferrari and Red Bull have shown a tremendous job on the track. Ferrari even went ahead to secure the first and second positions in the qualifying session while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen finished third.
Talking about the competitors, Hamilton said, “Those guys ahead of us are in another league. We’re not in the fight with those. They were a second ahead in race pace, but my battle is with the guys behind.”
Moreover, team principal Toto Wolff thinks that his team is the third team on the grid. Wolff said that the car is losing time on the straight, which has been their strength in the past.
“We have the data that we are running more drag than anybody else,” said Wolff. “We are seven-tenths behind with one car, that’s where we are.
He further added that he is “somewhat hesitant” about where Mercedes will be during the race, but at the same time says he sees it as a learning process.
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