At Imola, Lewis Hamilton crossed the finish line in sixth place, driving his W15 to the end.
Accepting Mercedes have “not done the best of jobs” in recent times, Lewis Hamilton is buoyed by their updates as they have found their “North Star”.
After facing challenges in the initial two years of Formula 1’s ground-effect aerodynamic era, Mercedes decided to undertake a comprehensive revamp of their Formula 1 car during the winter.
Mercedes have found their ‘North Star’ but change ‘takes time’
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
The team made several changes for this year’s W15, which included the redesign of the sidepods, nose, rear suspension, and cockpit positioning. The zero-pod concept, which had been scrapped the previous year, was not considered this time.
However, the team’s expectations have not been met as Toto Wolff mentions early-season correlation problems.
But putting new parts on the W15 in Miami and Imola, Hamilton believes Mercedes are moving in the right direction as they’ve found the “North Star” to chase with the car’s development.
He informed the media, including PlanetF1.com at Imola, that there is still a considerable distance to cover.
“I am extremely thrilled for the upcoming advancements. We made progress in the previous race, and we are taking another step forward this weekend. Additionally, there are further developments in progress.”
It seems that we have discovered a clearer direction in terms of what we need to do and alter, but it requires patience.
“The team’s energy is truly remarkable, displaying immense resilience. Despite facing numerous setbacks, they persistently push forward.”
“Our plan is to remain determined, stay concentrated, and consistently deliver our best performance every weekend.”
In the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Hamilton secured a sixth-place finish, while George Russell achieved an impressive seventh place, setting the fastest lap of the entire race.
More on Mercedes’ Imola improvements
Toto Wolff: Mercedes not pushing for ‘miracle update’ in approach to W15 improvements
Lewis Hamilton reveals current W15 pace gap with update on Mercedes wind tunnel
Mercedes can take solace in the fact that their issues are not originating from the power unit.
Following their victory at the Miami Grand Prix with Lando Norris, McLaren’s customer team continued their success by securing a second-place finish at Imola, with Norris trailing Max Verstappen by a mere 0.725 seconds at the finish line.
Hamilton stated that he believes it has always been evident that the engine is not the issue, as it is exceptional. He commended the team for their remarkable work in developing the technology.
“We have consistently excelled in our development rate, performance, and reliability within the hybrid industry. As a result, our engines have gained a reputation for their unwavering quality. Therefore, anyone who purchases our engines can rest assured knowing exactly what they are getting.”
“We acknowledge that we have not performed well in the automotive sector in recent years. However, we are putting in maximum effort to correct our mistakes.”
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