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Lewis Hamilton has insisted he will continue to motivate his Mercedes team after a disappointing start at the Bahrain GP
The 2023 Formula 1 season officially got underway over the weekend at the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Red Bull as expected, was victorious with world champion Max Verstappen literally cruising to victory with his teammate Sergio Perex who also finished second.
However, Mercedes were left pondering about the future of their season, with Lewis Hamilton finishing fifth behind Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, while George Russell was made to settle for seventh position.
Mercedes team captain Toto Wolff described the Bahrain Grand Prix as one of his worst races ever with the team facing a car headache if they are to mount a serious title challenge this season.
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But Mercedes superstar driver Lewis Hamilton insists he can drive the team to success this season.
Lewis Hamilton speaks out after upset in Bahrain GP
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton spoke after the race in Bahrain, expressing positivity depsite the team’s growing struggles from last season.
The 38-year-old Brit was asked if he was concerned that the team hasn’t made much progress since last season, and said: “Concerned wouldn’t be the word,” he told Motorsport.
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. “There is nothing I can say, I don’t want to say too much. We’ve just got to keep working.
“We know we are not where we need to be, and we know that this isn’t the right car. It is a difficult one.
“But I’ve just got to try and stay positive, keep my head up and keep pushing the guys. Keep trying to be a positive light for them and get the best points I can.”
The seven-time world champion alsp dismissed the suggestion that he was closer to the podium than he expected to be after qualifying.
“We were miles away,” Hamilton said.
“There was a Ferrari that would’ve been ahead of him [third-placed Alonso], so we would’ve really been sixth. So a podium was nowhere near.”
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He continued: “It generally felt the same as last year.
“When we did the strategy in the morning I told the guys it wasn’t going to go as far as they said it was going to go, and it didn’t.
“We have just got a lot of work to do. We have just got to add downforce to the car, we’re lacking a lot of downforce. That is really where the time will come. As soon as we put more load on the rear and the front we’ll pick up that pace.”
The opener in Bahrain saw Mercedes team struggle with the same tyre degradation issues as last season.
But Hamilton will be hoping the team can get it’s house in order ahead of the Saudi Arabia GP.
When is the next Formula 1 race?
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Drivers will get a rest weekend in between the first and second races of 2023.
Following the conclusion of the first race of the season. the Bahrain GP, the next race of the 2023 F1 season will take place in Saudi Arabia, at the Jeddah Corniche circuit.
The Saudi Arabia grand prix is slated to hold on the weekend of Friday, March 17 to Sunday, March 19, 2023.
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