After the 2024 Formula 1 season, Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, will depart from Mercedes and his teammate George Russell to join Ferrari.
Lewis Hamilton, according to Formula 1 legend David Coulthard, is “mentally” already at Ferrari, while George Russell, his Mercedes teammate, is having a far better start to 2024.
Hamilton shocked the Formula One world a little more than a month ahead of the new season when he revealed that he would be leaving Mercedes after 11 years and joining rivals Ferrari at the end of the current campaign. However, after struggling in 2023, the seven-time world champion has only managed eight points from the first two Grands Prix of the season.
Russell, a teammate, is fourth in the driver standings following the Saudi Arabian and Bahrain Grand Prix with 18 points. This prompted Coulthard, a fellow Brit, to charge 39-year-old Hamilton of going insane.
“He hasn’t been content with this vehicle,” Coulthard stated to Channel 4. “And it’s evident that George is currently perfecting his lap time, and Lewis is feeling vulnerable.”
“What is certain, though, is that he will deliver if he can find a window of opportunity to perform. However, it appears that he has already made the mental decision to travel to Ferrari at this point.”
After his transfer to Ferrari was confirmed, Hamilton stated, “I am 100 per cent committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my last year with the Silver Arrows one to remember,” indicating that he is fully focused on wrapping up his time with Mercedes in the proper manner.
But after finishing ninth in Saudi Arabia last Sunday, the 39-year-old admitted: “I wouldn’t say I’m having fun.” I most definitely can’t say that because I’m aiming for ninth. It is definitely not enjoyable to finish ninth. However, I’m having fun with the racing itself. And while hunting, I was pushing the car as hard as I could, making the most of every opportunity, and I was driving dangerously close to the edge.
Sadly, their performance was really subpar when they were moving quickly and trampling all over us. However, there are advantages. The car handles well at low speeds. We need to increase the high-speed load significantly. If we were able to accomplish that, then, in my opinion, it puts us in the battle. But there is still work to be done.”
Toto Wolff, the team principal for Mercedes, admits that the Mercedes vehicle hasn’t been up to par lately, which has caused Hamilton to stray more and further from the elusive eighth world championship. Next weekend, he and Russell, who is 13 years younger than him, will return to racing in Melbourne at the Australian Grand Prix, a race in which Wolff is hoping for improvement.
Wolff acknowledged, “We have been pursuing this fundamental change for the past two and a half years.” “We have to recognize something for the past two years, and that is the key to unlocking it. We simply need to get to work.
It’s not for lack of effort. We’ve worked really hard, and in the coming week, we’re going to give it a really big try with more information to comprehend.
Wolff acknowledged, “We have been pursuing this fundamental change for the past two and a half years.” “We have to recognize something for the past two years, and that is the key to unlocking it. We simply need to get to work.
Leave a Reply