LEWIS HAMILTON has once again expressed his fear regarding Mercedes’ car as he declared it could take FOUR races for them to challenge for victories.
The controversial new car is the talk of the paddock ahead of Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix with it boasting virtually non-existent sidepods.
Lewis Hamilton fears his Mercedes car may be too slow to challenge Red Bull this season
But despite the design built to increase speed, Hamilton doesn’t think it is quick enough.
The 37-year-old revealed last week how he believes the car will be too slow to deliver him a record-breaking eighth world F1 championship.
And he has once again spoke of the Silver Arrows‘ lack of pace with Ferrari and Red Bull impressing in pre-season testing.
Hamilton has stated how it could take at least four races to unlock the full performance of Mercedes’ car.
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Speaking during a visit to Expo 2020 Dubai, he said: “The testing has been difficult
“It’s crazy because, years ago, we used to have a lot of test days.
“And now we only have, literally, three days in the car altogether. So it’s not a lot of laps.
“When we go into this race, this week, we’re still learning about the car – we probably will be for the first four races at least. We’ve got a lot of problems.”
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Hamilton has also revealed he is in the process of changing his NAME to honour his mum’s legacy.
The British icon wants his mother’s surname Larbalestier to live on with him after questioning why women lose their surname after they become married.
He remarked: “It would mean the world to my family [to win an eighth title].
“It would mean a lot to me knowing that, for example, I am really proud of my family’s name, Hamilton.
“Actually none of you might know that my mum’s [sur]name is Larbalestier. And I’m just about to put that in my name.
“Because I don’t really fully understand the whole idea of why, when people get married, the woman loses her name.
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“I really want her name to continue on with the Hamilton name.”
Asked if the change would be in time for Sunday’s race, he added: “It will be soon. No, I don’t know if it will be this weekend. But we’re working on it.”
