Anthony Davidson: Lewis Hamilton missing a practice session in France not a ‘disaster’
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Lewis Hamilton and Nyck de Vries
Mercedes are still in search of their first victory this season, and for the first time in his career, Lewis Hamilton has gone more than 10 races without a race victory (now 11). George Russell, who has been in the top 5 in every race that he’s finished this season is yet to have a taste of victory, but this upcoming weekend in France may provide such an opportunity.
The circuit is extremely smooth, which will certainly suit the W13’s characteristics, as the car has looked much better on the smoother circuits such as Silverstone, at least much more comfortable to drive. In Silverstone, Hamilton’s pace had him looking a genuine contender for the victory against the two Ferrari boys, but a series of unfortunate (for the Silver Arrows) meant that Hamilton had to settle for second.
In Austria, while the two competed for pole at one stage, they did not look as competitive during the races, even though they were comfortably the third-best car. Perhaps part of that was due to George Russell’s early 5-second penalty, but Hamilton, in his third spot on the podium, was still over 41 seconds behind Charles Leclerc, who stood on the top step for the first time since April.
Also Read: “I’m gonna go with Hamilton,” Damon Hill predicts a Mercedes win at the French Grand Prix
Mercedes victory in France a ‘long shot’ but possible
Certainly, people’s expectations from Mercedes will be higher than they have been in any race barring Silverstone. Anthony Davidson, who works for Sky Sports as an analyst, believes that France will certainly be one of Mercedes’ better weekends, and perhaps presents them with their best shot at victory, yet.
Toto Wolff has hinted at upgrades coming in France, which should further help them along the way. When inquired on how Mercedes will fare this weekend, as reported by GPBlog, Anthony Davidson said: “It’s definitely a long shot, but if there’s any circuit you could choose from this season (where Mercedes have a shot at victory), it would’ve been Silverstone [Britain] and probably Paul-Ricard [France].”
Davidson said that Mercedes had a good solid race in Austria, even though they were not quite at the level of Ferrari (or even Red Bull), also saying that Austria has not been one of Mercedes’ strong points in the past, so it was rather expected of them to be a bit off the pace also adding that “Paul Ricard [is] a nice smooth circuit which should suit the car, high grip, high degradation should mean that the car should be in its happy place.”
Additionally, Nyck de Vries will be taking Lewis Hamilton’s place in the W13, as the drivers are obligated to make away for a ‘young’ driver for at least one practice session this season. Hamilton himself has chosen the track himself, and Davidson thinks that it is a good decision, as he expects Mercedes to be strong this weekend and the Briton missing one practice session isn’t a ‘disaster’.
Also Read: French GP 2022: Nyck de Vries to replace Lewis Hamilton in FP1
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)