Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has given an idea into where Mercedes’ W14 is currently lacking, after claiming fifth at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Hamilton was clearly unhappy with how things went at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, with the 38-year-old having found himself behind team-mate George Russell in virtually every session.
The Briton was even unable to overtake Russell in the second half of Sunday’s race, despite having been on a softer compound of tyre.
Overall, it wasn’t a weekend to remember for Hamilton, who continues to have no “confidence” in the W14.
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Following the race, Hamilton explained what the team need to do in order for him to become “more confident”, with the veteran having identified the W14’s lack of downforce as the biggest concern.
“We’re a long way down on downforce,” Hamilton said after finishing fifth for the second consecutive race.
“So we’ve got to pick up the rear end downforce, particularly. The more rear we gain, the more stable the rear becomes – the more confident I’ll be able to attack.
“But I think in general, just this car…
“Even if we do change that, there’s a specific thing with something on the car that I have never had before. It’s a position I’ve not had in previous years’ cars.
“For me, it’s the thing that is making me uncomfortable. I’ve just got to work hard to make sure it is changed. It’s on a knife edge when you’re above about 95 percent. But when you’re in a race stint, it’s much more controllable and predictable.
“I still don’t have the confidence in the race, but I’m doing the best I can with it.”
Whilst Mercedes still had some performance-based issues in Jeddah, the Germans did find themselves higher up the pecking order than they were in Bahrain.
The Silver Arrows were comfortably quicker than Ferrari on Sunday, something which Hamilton admitted was both “definitely strange” but also a “positive for us”.
“It is definitely strange to see the Ferrari are behind us,” Hamilton admitted. “It’s positive for us.
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“It’s a different surface here, and we don’t really understand why on this surface our car works one way, and it’s different in another.
“But there are lots of positives to take from this weekend. It will be up and down throughout the first three races.
“Hopefully we can get some upgrades ASAP and try to close that gap to the Aston Martins.”