After this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix qualifying session, Lewis Hamilton revealed his newfound confidence in the Mercedes W15, marking a key moment in his understanding of the car for the 2024 F1 season. This comes after a challenging start, with Hamilton experiencing his worst performance of 2024 Mr.
Key takeaways:
- Hamilton has set a clear direction for the development of the Mercedes W15 after a difficult start to the 2024 season.
- Despite a string of poor results and an engine failure in Melbourne, Hamilton’s performance in Japan saw a marked improvement.
- A focused approach to the car’s set-up this weekend allowed Hamilton to better understand its weaknesses and enjoy the drive significantly more.
Lewis Hamilton’s journey through the 2024 F1 season has so far been fraught with difficulties, culminating in a string of disappointing finishes and a particularly low moment with engine failure in Melbourne – that ICE has since been written off. However, the final qualifying session at the Japanese Grand Prix served as good padding, with Hamilton expressing a renewed sense of optimism and a deeper understanding of the Mercedes W15.
This weekend in Japan, the seven-time world champion showed an uptick in performance, consistently placing in the top five during practice sessions and eventually securing a seventh place start in the qualifying round. This feat not only marked his best position of the season, but also saw him overtake teammate George Russell for the first time this year. Hamilton’s lap, just six-tenths behind Max Verstappen’s leading pace, represented a marked improvement on his previous attempt at Suzuka, where he was more than a second behind.
Speaking candidly to Sky Sports F1, Hamilton revealed a strategic shift in his approach to car set-up, opting for stability over experimentation.
“I gave it my all,” said Hamilton, praising the team’s efforts to perfect the car’s set-up. “The team did a really great job this past week figuring out – or making adjustments to – our setup.
“It’s actually the first weekend where I haven’t gone crazy setting up and testing a bunch of stuff, so I’m back to a bit more normal and I think we’ve got the car into a much better run. Every lap was a really nice drive, it’s just that the guys in front are a bit faster.
“We were just over a second off Red Bull last year and seven (sic) tenths is better. I think if we had done something a little bit differently, maybe we would have been another tenth faster. Perhaps. But other than that, that was it.
“I think what it gave us is that I know exactly where the car is not strong enough.
I can feel it in the car and now I know I can tell them, “Put in that particular area.”
“Hopefully the race will be stronger and I really enjoyed driving the car this weekend.”
The driver was further asked if Mercedes had reached a point where they understood the future of the W15’s development: “I personally believe so,” he replied.
“What we noticed is that from track to track it was really, really hard to get the setup right and every time it was so far away.
“In some places you just feel like nothing we can do can get the car into a good position, but this weekend is much better. So I hope that continues in the next races and then we just have to add performance.”
Hamilton’s revelations point to a crucial development phase for Mercedes, suggesting a more optimistic outlook for the remainder of the season. The adjustments made in Japan could potentially serve as a blueprint for future races, aiming to consistently hit the car’s sweet spot and gradually introduce significant improvements.
