LEW’S NOT FEELING GREIGHT
MERCEDES ace Lewis Hamilton insists he is out of contention for a recordbreaking eighth world championship.
Ahead of the season’s curtain-raiser, the Brit fears his team are lagging behind Max Verstappen’s Red Bull and Ferrari .
Hamilton was speaking after his final action in
Bahrain testing yesterday and said: “It is too early to have those kind of thoughts about the world championship, but at the moment I don’t think we will be competing for wins.
“I am sure everyone can figure out that we are not the quickest.
“Ferrari look to be the fastest, and perhaps Red Bull and then maybe us, or
McLaren. We are currently not at the top.”
Mercedes struggled in testing last year, only for Hamilton to beat Verstappen at the first race.
And following six days of pre-season action, it has been suggested Toto Wolff’s team, which has powered Hamilton to five of the last seven titles and won the past eight constructors’ championships, is yet to show its true potential.
However, Hamilton said Mercedes have been disturbed by F1’s greatest upheaval of its technical rulebook in a generation.
He added “It feels a lot different to last year. It doesn’t look as good.
“We have far bigger challenges and they are not one-week turnarounds.”