FRUSTRATED Lewis Hamilton admits his Mercedes F1 car is lagging even further behind Max Verstappen’s all-conquering Red Bull than it was last year.
And he fears his machine’s controversial slim design — without the sidepods designed to channel the airflow — means he might NOT be able to close the gap.
Sir Lewis Hamilton admits his Mercedes car is lagging even more this season
Hamilton failed to win a single Grand Prix in 2022 — the first winless season in his illustrious career.
And Britain’s seven-time world champion was again left for dust in the desert.
After finishing a lowly eighth in practice for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, Hamilton said: “The gap wasn’t as big last season as it is now.
“We found out we’re a long way off. We knew that a little bit in the test but it’s a big gap.
“Do I believe we can close the gap at some stage? Yes. But it’s quite hard with the concept we have.
“It’s going to be milliseconds, not closing the gap of a second.”
Hamilton, 38, had hoped his Merc engineers had designed a better 2023 car that would put him back into contention for a record-breaking eighth world title.
But while last year’s “undriveable” bouncing issues have been cured, his car is much slower than his main rivals’.
The Brit continued: “We’ll continue to tweak little bits here and there but it’ll be small bits.
“It’s difficult for everybody, and not where anyone at the team wants to be, or where everyone at the team deserves to be, but we’re just on the wrong track.
“There was good progress through last year but the gap wasn’t as big as it is now.”
Hamilton’s team-mate George Russell was even further adrift in 13th spot while Fernando Alonso rolled back the years and was quickest in his Aston Martin.
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Red Bull star Max Verstappen dominated Formula One last season
Alonso, 41, has joined the team for this season and set a faster time than world champion Verstappen, who was second-quickest.
Alonso, who last won a race at the 2013 Spanish GP when he was driving for Ferrari, continued the hype surrounding Aston’s car for this season.
Meanwhile, Hamilton had earlier escaped punishment for another piercing and was granted special permission to race on medical grounds.
Last year he had fallen foul of an FIA ruling that outlaws drivers from wearing jewellery under their race suits before being granted an exemption for a nose stud.
But he now has a second piercing, in his left nostril, and that triggered another breach of the rules.
However, he successfully argued that by removing the offending stud, he would be at risk of “disfigurement”.
Formula One legend Lewis Hamilton didn’t win a single Grand Prix last season
A statement from the FIA said: “The stewards consulted the FIA medical delegate, who viewed the report, examined the driver and concurred with the opinion.
“We have determined to take no further action as there are concerns about disfigurement with frequent attempts at removal of the device.”
His Mercedes team have also snapped up a former Red Bull employee to become their team’s new special adviser.
Red Bull’s ex-HR director Jayne Poole had been Christian Horner’s confidante for years but has been signed to work with Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff and oversee team infrastructure.
She could fill a similar role held by Shaila-Ann Rao, the lawyer who left Mercedes to join the governing body last year.
Rao has since left the FIA but was a central figure in the cost-cap ruling that saw Red Bull punished for breaching the spend limit.
