F1 Azerbaijan GP: “I didn’t realize we’d have such a huge deficit,” Lewis Hamilton laments the poor straight-line speed of the W14

Mercedes and their W14 did not live up to expectations in qualifying at Baku

F1 Azerbaijan GP: “I didn’t realize we’d have such a huge deficit,” Lewis Hamilton laments the poor straight-line speed of the W14

Lewis Hamilton (Credits: The Mirror)

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix was action-packed from start to finish. It entailed two red flags, shock exits, surprise improvements, and disappointments. Mercedes F1 team showed great improvements through the first three races of the season, and after a strong Australian GP, they were tipped to be strong contenders at Baku. However, this has not been the case.

The British duo of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell managed only to qualify for P5 and P11, respectively. This comes as massively underwhelming, with the upgrades that were teased over the break, along with the momentum they carried into the weekend from the last race. When questioned on their dip in performance, Lewis Hamilton said, “I didn’t really know what to expect this weekend. I knew the Red Bulls would be particularly quick. I didn’t realise we’d have such a huge deficit on the straight. But it’s a good indicator.”

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Hamilton also emphasized upon how they were slower on the straights as well as through the middle sector, acknowledging the fact that the team drivers have a lot of work in store for them to rectify the car, along with it being quite difficult to drive. The team has a lot of ground to make up, which is completely contrary to what was expected of them this weekend.

Related: F1 Azerbaijan GP: “We tried something different,” Max Verstappen remains optimistic despite losing pole to Charles Leclerc

Mercedes’ struggles continue with a poor qualifying at Baku

Mercedes via Terra
Mercedes via Terra

The team based in Brackley has not been as competitive as they are typically renowned over the last two years and have struggled to make their intent to challenge for the title known on track. The Silver Arrows possess immense talent in the form of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, but their machinery hasn’t been up to par. The car looked average in testing, and their struggle for pace carried over from the 2022 season.

The team began the season poorly, managing finishes of just P5 and P7 at Bahrain. However, they seemed to begin to show improvement slowly and looked far more competitive at the second race in Jeddah. This time, they managed a solid P4 and P5, showing an upward trajectory. They carried this momentum into the Australian GP, where their pace wasn’t limited to qualifying but seemed just as strong in the race. If not for the unfortunate retirement of George Russell due to reliability issues, the team could have achieved a strong result. Lewis Hamilton on the other hand, crossed the line to secure an admirable P2, showing the world that Mercedes were ready to compete in the coming races.

Over the 4 week gap between Melbourne and Baku, Mercedes seemed intent on taking any measures necessary to place them back at the front of the grid. This included big upgrades, as well as shuffling the ranks within the team. The upgrades were met with high expectations and confidence alike. However, the results are in stark contrast to such.

In Baku, George Russell made a shocking Q2 exit, not even cutting to make it into the top 10 shootouts, edged out by his teammate. Lewis Hamilton did this with a very fine margin, however, going faster by just four thousandths of a second. Q3 didn’t show any more positivity for the German team, as they only managed P5, going backward from the strong progress they had managed in the preceding races. The straight-line speed of the Mercedes is poor, and in a circuit like Baku with several key straights, it is a key factor, and it will undoubtedly affect them in the race. Mercedes can only hope that they can replicate their momentum from the first three races and apply them once again in the weekends to come.

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