MERCEDES will not bring in a major package of improvements until May meaning Lewis Hamilton’s car woes look set to continue.
The seven-times world champion has been vocal about issues he has with this year’s car which appear miles off Max Verstappen‘s Red Bull.
Hamilton, Verstappen and Alonso managed to emerge on the podium in an Australian Grand Prix full of incident
While Mercedes have dealt with the porpoising problems that afflicted it last year, the car has still been short on pace.
Positive signs emerged at the weekend’s Australian Grand Prix with fellow Mercedes driver George Russell able to fend off Verstappen for the lead at the beginning of the Grand Prix.
But once the race restarted following the first of three red flags and the young Brit’s car broke down, it was left to Hamilton to keep up the fight.
He had to watch in vain as Verstappen stormed past him and proceeded to open up another huge lead at the front.
Hamilton will have to wait for a major package of upgrades until May’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, the Times has confirmed.
The new cost cap means that teams have to upgrade more carefully than before, with Mercedes planning for the race on the infamous Imola circuit to bring in sweeping changes to their struggling car.
That race and the next few after should give fans an idea of whether Hamilton and Russell can challenge Red Bull or if Verstappen might waltz to a third Driver’s Championship.
Elsewhere, the problems seem even more stark at Ferrari who have been largely uncompetitive in the opening three races of the season.
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While Aston Martin continue to impress with Fernando Alonso the only man apart from Verstappen to feature on the podium in all three races.
The Spaniard, Hamilton and Verstappen had to tiptoe through a dramatic race in Australia that left many questioning decisions from race directors again.
Two red flags came after crashes for Williams driver Alex Albon and Kevin Magnussen of Haas.
But chaos reigned on the second restart as Alonso got tagged by Carlos Sainz, Logan Sargeant hit the back of Nyck de Vries and the Alpine drivers crashed into each other.
Following the cancellation of the Chinese Grand Prix, F1 now has a mini-break until the next race at the end of the month in Azerbaijan.
Complete F1 2023 race calendar – details on every Grand Prix this year
