Red Bull and their beast of a car, the RB19 has dominated the entire 2023 season and is the cause of concern for Lewis Hamilton. After the recent Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where the reigning champion, Max Verstappen bagged his 19th win of the season, there have been tensions brewing within the grid. The Dutch driver controlled the race, winning by a good margin over Charles Leclerc’s desperate attempt.
Hamilton expressed worry about Red Bull’s considerable edge given that they have not upgraded the car since August and are already working on the 2024 model. In an interview with Sky Sports, he stated, “[Red Bull] haven’t even developed their car since August; it’s definitely a concern. But we’ve learned a lot about the car [W14] and it’s just down to the team now and they know what they need to do.”
Lewis Hamilton’s prediction regarding Red Bull in 2024
“Red Bull won by 17 seconds and they have not touched the car since August or July..”
“So you can pretty much guess where they’re going to be next year.”
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) November 27, 2023
Toto Wolff, the principal of the Mercedes team, noted the monumental task of catching up to Red Bull’s RB19 and compared it to climbing Mount Everest. Considering Red Bull’s early focus shift, Hamilton, who has gone more than two full seasons without a victory, believes it will be difficult to close up the gap.
Even though Silver Arrows changed their design philosophy and finished second in the Constructors’ Championship, both Wolff and Lewis were unapologetic about the Austrian outfit’s superiority going into the winter break.
Lewis Hamilton urges Toto Wolff and Mercedes for a better car in 2024
Mercedes had a very difficult season in which it failed to win any race at all. As a result, the Brackley-based team is banking on a fully revamped 2024 W15 vehicle to make a surprise return. The seven-time world champion put forward his worries and emphasized how crucial it is for Silver Arrows to succeed in the new ground effect era without slipping up for the third time in a row.
When questioned about the building pressure within the team and on the team principal, Lewis Hamilton said, “A huge amount for sure. Not just Toto but globally, all of us. Everyone back at the factory, a huge amount of pressure on them.” He then went on to compare Red Bull’s development tactics and how good they are at it.
📰: Lewis Hamilton emphasizes the “huge amount” of pressure on Mercedes and Toto Wolff to deliver a competitive car for the 2024 Formula 1 season. After a winless 2023 campaign, Mercedes is banking on a new car concept for its 2024 W15 challenger to revive its performance.… pic.twitter.com/wJCRTSHPB4
— F1 Naija (@f1_naija) November 29, 2023
He added, “If you look at Red Bull, and they’ve done an amazing job, but from Bahrain last year, they had a bouncing issue and fixed it that week. But every time we tried to add it, it was worse. We just didn’t improve for a long, long, long time.”
Notwithstanding the obstacles, recent developments, such as the reappointment of technical director James Allison and a modification to the car’s design, have inspired hope. While he acknowledged that growth is not always an easy road, he was confident in the team’s more accurate trajectory.