April 7th 2024.
Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time Formula 1 champion, has been having a tough start to the 2024 racing season. After four races, he has only managed to score 10 points, leaving him ninth in the standings. This disappointing performance was further compounded by a dismal showing at the Japanese Grand Prix, which left Hamilton feeling infuriated with his Mercedes team.
The weekend started off on a positive note for Hamilton, as he declared Friday's practice session as his "best session" of the season so far. However, things quickly took a turn for the worse during qualifying, where he only managed to secure a seventh place spot on the grid. And unfortunately, it only went downhill from there.
During the race, Hamilton was left questioning Mercedes' tyre strategy, and at one point, he even demanded a change in strategy. But despite his frustrations, he ultimately finished in ninth place, a whopping 48 seconds behind the winner, Max Verstappen.
In a post-race interview with Sky Sports, Hamilton expressed his disappointment with his team's performance, stating that they had once again messed up. However, he also acknowledged that even with the right strategy, his car's lack of speed would have made it difficult to improve his position.
"The hard tyre was pretty bad as I said. The medium tyre was much better so yeah for sure. In hindsight, it looks like we should have had two medium tyres. But in general, the car was pretty bad," Hamilton shared.
He also mentioned some early damage to his car, which he believes was caused by Charles Leclerc's maneuvers. This damage, along with the car's understeer, made it difficult for Hamilton to make progress on the track. In fact, he even let his teammate George Russell pass him at one point.
The result in Japan means that Hamilton is now a staggering 67 points behind Verstappen in the championship standings. This is not the start to the season that Mercedes had hoped for, as they were aiming to close the gap to Red Bull. Instead, they have fallen significantly behind and currently sit in fourth place, far from their rivals at the front of the pack.
With the next race in China just two weeks away, Mercedes will be looking to turn their fortunes around and improve their standing in the championship. But for now, Hamilton and his team are left to reflect on a disappointing start to the season and work towards making a comeback in the races to come.
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