Lewis Hamilton has described the worst start to the Formula 1 season of his career as a mental test and warned it was a tough start after he and Mercedes endured a dismal weekend at the Australian Grand Prix. A challenge that puts him in danger of going through the motions.
Seven-time Mercedes champion Toto Wolff was equally blunt in his assessment, describing it as a brutal pain in the ass, admitting it was a legitimate question to ask him whether it was time to step down from the role and that he also did not feel positive about his football career. The team’s situation is not optimistic either.
Hamilton retired with engine failure on lap 17 of the Melbourne race, which was won by Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz.
The British driver struggled all weekend, finishing 11th in qualifying and making little progress during the race due to engine failure. He has scored just eight points in three races this season, finishing seventh in Bahrain and ninth in Saudi Arabia, down from his lowest start in 2009 (sixth) when he was disqualified. and seventh) are even worse.
This is the third year in a row that Mercedes has failed to deliver a car capable of competing at the front, having been overtaken not only by world champions Red Bull this season but also Ferrari and Australia’s McLaren.
After leaving the injured car trackside at Albert Park, Hamilton admitted that another season of struggle with little results was far from inspiring.
“This has to be the worst start to a season I’ve ever had, worse than 2009,” he said. “It’s mentally tough on everyone on the team. When everyone has so much work to do over the winter, you get excited and motivated and motivated, and then you have a mindset that you’re going to Fight to win.
“Obviously that’s not the case and you think: ‘Well, maybe second, third’. No, it’s not, it cascades further down and you just go through the motions. It’s challenging. “
His teammate George Russell crashed on the last lap but could only finish seventh, ending a very disappointing weekend for Mercedes.
They enter the new year with a new design philosophy for their cars and are optimistic that the new season will bring even greater rewards. Instead, the issues seemed all too familiar, with the car not performing as expected in the wind tunnel and not providing a stable, reliable platform from one race to the next.
Wolff, who joined Mercedes in 2013 (the same year as Hamilton) and has been by the British driver’s side throughout his six championships with the team, admits a difficult start to 2024 .
“You see the progress McLaren and Ferrari have made, so on the one hand I want to punch myself in the nose,” he said. “We have to really dig deep because this is brutal pain.
“I’d be lying if I said I felt positive and optimistic about the situation. You need to get over the negative thoughts and say ‘we’re going to turn this around,’ but today it felt very, very brutal.”
The 52-year-old, a one-third shareholder of Mercedes, also admitted it was legitimate to ask whether he was the right person to lead the team but insisted he would not resign.
“I look in the mirror every day and look at everything I do, and it’s a fair question, but it [leaving] This is not what I feel I should be doing right now,” he said.
“If you ask the manager, I can’t go to Chelsea or Liverpool, I can’t go to Ferrari, I don’t have that option. [as a co-owner] This is also unfortunate. I’m not a contractor or an employee who says, “I’ve had enough.” My hamster wheel keeps spinning and I can’t get out. “
