Lewis Hamilton claims Mercedes ‘not as fast’ as McLarens after Friday at British GP

Lewis Hamilton asserted that Mercedes would struggle to match the Woking-based team in pure pace this weekend.

Lewis Hamilton claims Mercedes ‘not as fast’ as McLarens after Friday at British GP

Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris (images via IMAGO)

The British GP Free practice sessions on Friday were not the best for Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. Both the Mercedes drivers struggled to finish in the top three. In both practice sessions, McLaren’s fastest times indicate they are the quickest. Hamilton believed Mercedes lacked a lot of speed compared to the Papayas.

Lewis Hamilton after the practice sessions mentioned the pace felt good in his car. However, he felt comfortable with how the car was performing, but it wasn’t as fast as the McLarens and other leading teams. This contrasts with Lando Norris’ claim that Mercedes is currently as quick as McLaren. He pointed out that Mercedes doesn’t have significant upgrades for this weekend’s race. Instead, they’ve made some minor adjustments and tweaks to certain components. However, Hamilton mentioned these changes may not necessarily improve the car’s overall performance drastically.

It generally felt good, just not as fast as the guys ahead. Like the McLarens. We don’t have upgrades this weekend. We have some small tweaks to things but not necessarily upgrades.
Lewis Hamilton said
YouTube video

Lewis Hamilton expressed that whenever the team makes improvements to the car, they feel they are making progress in the right direction. However, the Briton noted that other teams also introduce upgrades with them. He mentioned in FP2 , he was trailing six and a half tenths of a second. Hamilton highlighted uncertainty about the exact number but acknowledged that they have significant work ahead to close this gap and improve their competitiveness.

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But every time we add something to the car we are going in the right direction but the others bring upgrades at the same time, so. We were six and a half tenths in that one [FP2]. I don’t know if it’s truly, exactly six tenths but we got some work to do.
Lewis Hamilton added

George Russell strategize to use soft tires for the race

George Russell talked about his practice sessions. In the morning, he felt very positive because his car was performing well. However, things were a bit tougher in the afternoon. The 26-year-old thought they hadn’t got the setup right for the changing wind conditions and hadn’t optimized the tires perfectly. Despite this, the British driver believed the car’s speed was similar to what they had seen in Austria recently.

This morning was really good to be honest, car was feeling great. We struggled a bit more this afternoon, need to understand why. It got a little bit windier and I don’t think we quite nailed the tires but I think, probably similar competitiveness as we’ve seen in the last few races.
George Russell said
George Russell and Lando Norris
George Russell and Lando Norris (Via: Imago)

Russell explained their strategy for the Sunday’s race. The team’s considering keeping most of the soft tires for the race itself. However, they’re also considering using a set of medium tires during the third practice session instead of the soft ones. By testing the medium tires in FP3, they aim to gather data and predict how well these tires perform over a longer run. This will help the Silver Arrows decide the best tire strategy for maximizing performance and minimizing pit stops during the actual race.

I think we’re planning to keep most of the soft tyres for the race. But we also need to see if we use it a medium in FP3 instead of the softs. Having a look at strategy for Sunday.”
George Russell added

Certainly, George Russell felt good about the practice sessions speed of his car. However, things got a bit tough because of the rain making the tires wet. Fans are hoping for an outstanding performance from both the Mercedes drivers as it is the Briton’s home race in Silverstone.

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