Lewis Hamilton is confident that Mercedes has developed the battle-worthy car following the new regulations for the 2022 championship.
Teams took their cars to the track in Barcelona for the pre-season testing and to see how their cars perform ahead of the 2022 season. Hamilton drove the W13 in the afternoon session of the first day of testing.
With an overhaul of technical regulations for the 2022 season, there is a lot of unpredictability over which team will come out at the top. As none of the teams has already established a method of acing the new regulations, all the teams will start the 2022 season from scratch.
As nine of the ten teams have already revealed their new powertrain, it can be seen that the new cars are very different in terms of design from their 2021 predecessors.
Inspector ̶S̶e̶b̶ Lewis 🔎
Lewis Hamilton had a quick look at Max Verstappen’s new Red Bull this morning as Day One of testing started in Barcelona ☀️ pic.twitter.com/vvw2W7nAxC
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) February 23, 2022
Already having won eight constructors’ titles, the Brackley-based team is targeting a ninth win. However, there have been predictions that the 2022 cars will be slower and will run closer to each other. Some experts have also predicted that following the changes, the pecking order might also change.
Lewis Hamilton has faith in his team
Lewis Hamilton is positive that his team has done a good job on the new car and he hopes to win a ninth constructors’ title. The seven-time world champion is excited to see how the other teams have performed.
He said, “Every year is exciting but this one is completely brand new. I’ve seen designs of our car obviously, but this is the first time you get to see the other teams out there on the track.”
“You want to keep a close eye and see why others have taken a different route. You have no idea where you stand, so it’s definitely exciting. I hope these rules deliver in terms of closer racing. It puts everyone on a closer playing field.”
Some of the drivers and engineers believe that the new changes could increase the possibility of some teams moving further up while the previous leading teams fall behind.
However, Hamilton has full faith Mercedes will continue to give him the platform to challenge for the title in 2022.
“Why would I ever feel that way? My team don’t make mistakes,” the seven-time former World Champion said unequivocally when asked if he feels Mercedes may not produce a front-running car this year.
“Of course, that’s a risk [with the 2022 regulations] but I trust the team. Whether it’s good or bad. we will work through it.”
