Hamilton haul about the team

LEWIS HAMILTON is determined to haul Mercedes above Ferrari in the F1 constructors’ championship to help the team’s 1,200 employees battle the UK’s cost-of-living crisis.

Mercedes head into tomorrow’s penultimate round of the season in Brazil 40 points adrift of second-placed Ferrari with Max Verstappen’s all-conquering Red Bull team already champions.

But Mercedes staff at the team’s Brackley headquarters will land a substantially bigger bonus if Hamilton and team-mate George Russell

(inset) can take the runners-up slot.

“I know how important finishing second is for the team in terms of bonuses, especially at a time when living costs in the UK have sky rocketed,” said Hamilton.

“If I am being realistic, Ferrari have an amazing car. I don’t know what happened last weekend in Mexico, but it is most likely they will be back at the front here.

“So it will be no easy feat to beat them. But if we did, it would be an amazing comeback.”

Hamilton is without a victory in 2022 and is facing the likelihood of losing his unique record of winning a race in each season he has contested.

But the British driver, fifth in the standings and 15 points behind Russell, added: “To me, we are winners this year.

“That is not how it will be seen on the outside, but I feel everyone in the team is a winner.

“They have dug so deep.”

Kevin Magnussen will start today’s sprint race at the front after the Haas driver made the best of changeable conditions in Sao Paulo to land his first career pole.

The Dane benefitted from Russell beaching his Mercedes and after a red flag the rain intensified.

Only Hamilton ventured out but he could not improve from eighth place.

Verstappen joined Magnussen on the front with Russell third and Lando Norris fourth.