Lewis Hamilton has been left extremely happy at the United States Grand Prix, with Mercedes’ newest upgrades package being “an improvement”, according to the 103-time race winner.
The seven-time World Champion has been very critical of the W14 this season and the direction he wants to the team to work towards for 2024; however, he admitted that this weekend’s upgrades are the “first” he’s “actually felt” since the new aerodynamic regulations were introduced.
His happiness with the new upgrades was evident at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) on Friday, where he qualified third for Sunday’s race.
Hamilton is the most successful driver at COTA with five wins to his name, whilst 2013 is the only season he’s never finished the United States GP on the rostrum.
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Given that the 38-year-old tends to be stronger on a Sunday than in qualifying, there is a real sense of belief that victory could be on the cards.
Should Hamilton be victorious on Sunday, then it’d represent his first win since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Going back to the upgrades, Hamilton isn’t sure if it’s necessarily something which will feature in 2024; however, he believes that returning to “super competitive mode” is in sight.
“I don’t know really if it’s a signifier of anything for next year,” Hamilton said, as reported by Motorsport Week.
“As we continue to experiment, we get more and more knowledge of where we are going, where we are routing the flow of the car.
“The floor is not a huge amount different. There’s always hype with someone’s upgrade, but the rest of the car is exactly the same and there’s lots of areas in which we can improve.
“But this is an improvement. This is one of the first upgrades that I’ve actually felt over the last two years.
“So that’s, that’s a positive and we just need two or three times this step to put us in, you know, super competitive mode, which I believe the guys can do.”
Mercedes are working tirelessly back at Brackley to try and not only claim second in the Drivers’ Championship but also to be in a position where they can compete with Red Bull next season.
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Hamilton recognises the immense effort the Silver Arrows are putting in to try and get back to the top, with him being “really grateful” for everyone’s determination.
“I’m really grateful for the improvements that the team have made with the car,” Hamilton added.
“Everyone’s worked so hard to bring some upgrades and, for us to be this close to McLaren and Ferrari and even the Red Bulls, I think it’s a showing of just how hard everyone’s worked.”