Lewis Hamilton discusses the need for strategic changes in Mercedes F1 to overcome past mistakes and improve performance.
Lewis Hamilton is delighted to be back in Shanghai, where he remains the most recent winner of the Chinese Grand Prix. This victory came during the 1000th race of the world championship, where the Mercedes F1 driver triumphed decisively.
“The track is incredible,” praised Hamilton, who remains cautious about the W15’s performance. “They’ve built a great circuit here. Nothing has changed with our car; it’s the same this weekend.”
“But we understand it a bit better now. We’re looking at what happened last weekend. We’ve made improvements, and so we’re bringing some of those lessons to this weekend, along with new directions.”
“I think if we could go back, we would do things differently. That’s the benefit of hindsight and experience, so we’re going to try to bring those lessons to this weekend and see if we can implement some of those changes. I hope this will allow us to enhance our performance.”
“Continue to leave nothing to chance”
Asked how he manages to improve after a challenging start to the season, he explains that it comes with experience: “Over time, you learn how to manage your time and energy, and your comeback. You have to realize that every day is a new day and that you can do your best.
“If you’re an athlete who trains and runs for example 70 to 80 kilometers a week, running 150 kilometers a week doesn’t mean you’ll win the race. It’s more about communicating with the team, and making sure you continue to try to leave nothing to chance. Personally, that’s what I think about.”
While Fernando Alonso has extended his contract, Hamilton is pleased to see an older driver remain on the grid, but he particularly commends the level at which the Spaniard continues to perform over time.
“I never thought I’d race into my forties, I’m pretty sure I said I wouldn’t go that far! It’s such a crazy journey, life, I don’t feel like I’m approaching forty, I still feel young!”
“I feel good in general. It’s really positive because it first means I’m not the oldest driver here! But Fernando is also one of the best drivers in the sport, so his presence shows what’s possible.”
Russell reminds drivers to “lead the team”
George Russell is also looking forward to the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, and he knows he has a tough fight against Ferrari, McLaren F1, and Aston Martin, Mercedes’ current rivals.
“Personally, I’m eager for it,” stated Russell. “Formula 1 is extremely competitive right now, with four teams battling for second place. Everyone is very motivated to improve.”
Russell acknowledges that Mercedes needs to improve, and he discusses the driver’s role in this: “I think it’s always important to look inward before looking at others. We need to focus on our own points; we are the drivers and we need to drive the car as fast as possible.”
“However, we also need to help lead the team forward and towards the developments we want for the car. We spend time in the simulator trying to figure out what we could have done better in previous weekends, what needs to be done to improve the car, and what needs to be changed in the long term.”
As a driver, there’s always more you can do, and it’s this interaction that’s important. We work collectively with the engineers on how we can, as drivers, extract more from the car and the tires, and how we can, as a team, progress over time.”
Mercedes F1 to ‘implement changes’ due to past mistakes. Mercedes F1 to ‘implement changes’ due to past mistakes
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