Hamilton endured a irritating weekend in Jeddah, qualifying eighth after which ending ninth after a raffle to remain out and acquire monitor place underneath the protection automotive didn’t repay.
The monitor format highlighted the automotive’s below-par efficiency in quick corners, and Hamilton and his team-mate George Russell had been each outpaced by at the very least one automotive from Crimson Bull, Ferrari, McLaren and Aston Martin, successfully benchmarking Mercedes as fifth quickest.
Staff boss Toto Wolff admitted there was a “basic” problem with the automotive that meant it struggled on high-speed corners.
Hamilton recommended that it could take a while to enhance the W15, and thus there might be some troublesome weekends forward.
“It should be difficult in these subsequent races,” he stated. “I feel all of the high-speed circuits we’re going to be at a drawback with the package deal we at present have.
“However we’re good within the low-speed, and among the medium-speed, we’re not so unhealthy. It is simply actually the high-speed, so we simply have so as to add efficiency.”
He added: “It was like I used to be in a unique class after I was going by way of the excessive velocity with the opposite guys round me.”
In Jeddah, Hamilton had a battle with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri that lasted for a lot of laps, and whereas he loved with the ability to race he admitted that he could not take a lot pleasure from the general end result.
“I would not say I am having enjoyable,” he stated when requested about his race by Motorsport.com. “I imply, I am racing for ninth, so I positively cannot say that. Ending ninth is certainly not enjoyable.
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, Sergio Perez, Crimson Bull Racing RB20
Photograph by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Pictures
“However I’m having fun with the precise racing half. And I used to be searching and I used to be pushing as exhausting as I might, I used to be maximising all the pieces I had with the automotive, I used to be proper on the sting.
“It was simply sadly actually missing efficiency within the high-speed, the place they had been strolling throughout us.
“However there are positives. The automotive is nice in low velocity. Now we have so as to add plenty of load within the high-speed. I feel if we had been ready to try this then I feel it places us within the combat. However we have some work to do.”
Hamilton made it clear that he had anticipated extra from the automotive after the optimism round its launch final month.
“It is irritating to a few years in a row be in nearly the identical place,” he stated. “It is positively powerful, however we’ll get our heads down and maintain working away.
“I do know everybody again on the manufacturing unit is pushing as exhausting as they will, however we have positively bought to make some huge modifications. We have not made large enough modifications, maybe.
“You take a look at the three groups which might be forward of us and so they nonetheless have completely different ideas to the place we’re in some areas. So we have some efficiency so as to add, that is for positive.”
