© Stephen Reuss for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix ltd.
Lewis Hamilton says Mercedes has “something in the pipeline moving forward”, and he is hoping they can challenge Red Bull “at least by the end of the year”.
After Mercedes’ great result at the Spanish Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was asked if he thinks the team will be able to match Red Bull’s performance this year.
“With the current car that we have, I don’t think we’ll be matching their performance but we’re working on improving the car,” the Briton said.
“So, with the current package we’re limited to the pace that we had today, but I think there’s a huge amount of work and studying and improvement that we hopefully will have coming in the future.
“Naturally, they should also be progressing through the year, so we need to be taking big chunks out of them with every step we take.
“I think today they were a good few tenths ahead of us, maybe half a second ahead of us per lap, and on a single lap, that’s a little bit bigger.
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“But I think we’re going in the right direction and I know we have something in the pipeline moving forward, so I’m hoping that at least by the end of the year, maybe we can could challenge them.”
Lewis then said his main focus is on making sure Mercedes hits the ground running from the get-go in 2024.
“I’m more focused on making sure next year we have the car to challenge them from day one. And the further we continue to push this car this year, the more that impacts next year also, in some ways.
“But the more we learn about this car also, that also sets us in the right direction. It’s trying to find the right balance.
“They’re so far ahead and ultimately Max will continue to win this year, but that means they can start on their development for next year sooner, earlier than anyone else if they haven’t already – and that’s the danger.
“So, we’ve just got to keep working hard but also try to get the right balance,” Hamilton concluded.
