Hamilton hints at car issues as Ferrari promises improvements ahead of Bahrain GP, with better results anticipated after crucial updates.
At first glance, Lewis Hamilton’s 7th place finish, far behind Charles Leclerc, didn’t give much hope to his fans.
However, the seven-time world champion remained optimistic and confident after the Japanese Grand Prix. He believes a specific issue with his car was the cause of his performance deficit, an issue that was not present on Leclerc’s car and is expected to be fixed by the next race in Bahrain.
But can Lewis elaborate more? Doesn’t he drive the same car as his teammate?
“I really hope we’ll see positive changes at the next race,” Hamilton said.
“During the first three races, there’s been a gap between the two sides of the garage with a particular element on the car.”
“Something on my side isn’t working right. It’s good to know what the problem is. Given what I had, this was the best result I could achieve.”
But what exactly is this mysterious malfunctioning part? Hamilton didn’t go into much detail, although it’s suspected to be related to the floor and ride height…
“We’ve identified something on the car that has been underperforming for the last three races. I really hope that once it’s fixed, I’ll be able to get better results.”
“I’m losing over a tenth per lap because of this issue. I hope it’ll be solved at the next race.”
Hamilton also mentioned a “performance deficit at the rear of the car.”
He confirmed: “When this new part arrives, I hope the problem will disappear, and it’ll be the same for both cars.”
Has Hamilton started a psychological battle with Ferrari by suggesting his car isn’t the same as Leclerc’s? Or is it a production issue at Maranello?
Regardless, Hamilton knows where he can find further areas for improvement: car setups.
“I’m still observing how the team operates,” he said.
“Australia was my first chance to see how they work during a race weekend, which is different from testing—how they like to set up the car, the adjustments they make throughout the weekend.”
“As I get more comfortable and knowledgeable about the car, I’ll be able to make more decisions and say, ‘Actually, I want to go with this setup.’”
At Suzuka, Hamilton chose to raise the car’s ride height to avoid another disqualification due to excessive floor wear, as in Shanghai.
“Yes, we’re running a bit higher than we would like,” he admitted. “I’m not sure if that’s the case for everyone, but after the last race, we definitely raised the car.”
“In general, it’s the kind of domino effect you see after a weekend like that. Charles had an exceptional lap in qualifying. I took a different approach to the setup, and we had a lot of understeer without being able to eliminate it.”
Vasseur Promises Improvement for Ferrari in Bahrain
When asked about Hamilton’s comments on the Ferrari setup, Frédéric Vasseur, Ferrari’s team principal, pointed the finger at his own driver.
At Maranello, it seems there is still some trial and error…
“The balance and everything else are down to their choices,” Vasseur responded directly to Hamilton.
“Of course, we all want to run the car lower, and we all want more downforce, that would be better, but there’s a limit,” he said.
“But there’s a limit: the limit is bottoming out, and the limit is also the regulations.”
“We spend the whole weekend trying to find that limit, seeing how low we can set the car, but sometimes we go too low.”
“It’s the same for everyone, and we all know that the car’s performance is closely linked to ride height. This has been true for us and for everyone for years.”
“We were disqualified [at the 2023 US Grand Prix with Leclerc, just like Mercedes with Hamilton], and that was because we were trying to hit the same limit.”
“It’s not a feature of this year’s car, nor is it something specific to Ferrari. It’s the same for all teams.”
Is the French team principal sounding the alarm after a disappointing start to the year? Will there be improvements for the next GP, especially with the new parts planned?
“For the last two years, we’ve started the season like this, and it’s not ideal. We’d rather be winning than finishing fifth, of course.”
“But we don’t need to change our approach. A year ago, we were about in the same situation, maybe even worse in terms of pace.”
“And the team’s reaction was very, very strong. We worked together and made small steps forward.”
“We’re still in the process of exploring this new car and trying different directions to adapt to the drivers.”
“I think Bahrain will show a different picture because we tested there for three days last month, and we’re more in control now.”
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Ferrari’s Setup Dilemma: Hamilton’s Secret Car Issue Revealed Ferrari’s Setup Dilemma: Hamilton’s Secret Car Issue Revealed