Lewis Hamilton has said that Mercedes can narrow the performance gap to Red Bull after finishing second to Max Verstappen in the 2023 Australian Grand Prix.
Hamilton started third on the grid but quickly passed Verstappen on the inside into Turn 3, taking the lead in the early stages of the race. However, his teammate George Russell took over the lead after Hamilton pitted under a safety car, which turned into the first of three red-flag stoppages.
Both Hamilton and Verstappen could change their tires without any penalty, and Verstappen ultimately overtook Hamilton with DRS into Turn 9. Russell retired due to a power unit fire, but Hamilton’s second-place finish marked Mercedes’ best result of the season despite the limited W14 car.
Furthermore, the seven-time world championbelieves it will be challenging but not impossible for Mercedes to catch up to Red Bull, who have been the dominant force so far in 2023. He expressed dissatisfaction with the W14 car, stating that he doesn’t feel connected to it.
He said “I’m driving as best I can with that disconnect and I’m working as hard as I can to try and create that connection. But I think it’s a long project.
“But still, considering we’ve been down on performance, we’re clearly down on straight [line] pace compared to the Red Bulls, for us to be up here fighting with Aston [Martin, third in Melbourne] is just amazing at this point in the season.
“We just have to keep on fighting. A big, big thank you to all the people back at the factory. Let’s keep pushing.
“We can close that gap. It’s going to be tough but not impossible.”
Also, Hamilton also noted that Mercedes must assess its reliability record, as both Russell and McLaren suffered from engine failures in the first two races of the season. Hamilton expressed gratitude for his unexpected second-place finish and confirmed that he was not bluffing about concerns over his hard-compound Pirellis not lasting until the end of the race. However, the FIA’s controversial deployment of two additional red-flag restarts ultimately helped him save his tires.
Read more on Max Verstappen claims victory in dramatic Australian GP
