There had been a “misunderstanding” during qualification as Russell and Hamilton collided, but any tensions were smoothed out a the elder Briton twice singled out his team-mate for praise over a “mega job”.Īfter ending the opening lap in seventh, Russell had cleared Fernando Alonso, before slipstreaming his way ahead of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon. The other half of Mercedes’ day of resurgence was a scintillating drive from third-placed George Russell, who vastly outpaced Ferrari to weave through the field from 12th.
“I know we have something in the pipeline moving forward,” he added. The upgrade had been unveiled in Monaco less than a fortnight ago, and he hinted there could be further improvements to the car in the coming weeks. “This is a big boost for everybody’s morale and we are going to take that energy on to developing the car.”
“It felt the best yesterday and today than it has felt for the past 15 months so it is super encouraging not only for me but for everyone an the team,” he said of his car. Hamilton, meanwhile, pulled on a pair of large dark sunglasses midway through his press conference but there was no hiding the beaming smile on his face at the significance of what now appears possible. “We just need some time and to sit over coffee,” he said. Both played down the significance of talks, but Wolff sounded optimistic. Instead, the sport’s most recognisable star will sit down for coffee with Wolff confident that his Mercedes can once again go toe-to-toe with Red Bull by the end of this season. But, on the evidence of Sunday, Red Bull’s old rival has jolted from its slumber at the precise moment it needed to show out-of-contract Hamilton he has unfinished business with the Brackley team.Ī first double podium finish since Brazil last year was celebrated like one of Hamilton’s 103 career wins and for the first time in weeks, there were no whispers of a switch to Ferrari. Yet Mercedes engineers had one last secret tweak up their sleeve to try that evening and, from nowhere, Hamilton emerged with what he now describes as his best car since 2021.Īs Toto Wolff declared: “Let’s keep our expectations real.” The imperious Max Verstappen edges unstoppably towards another championship after a fifth win from seven.
The eureka moment came deep into Friday night ahead of a Spanish Grand Prix that may have secured Lewis Hamilton’s future at Mercedes.Įarlier that day, the seven-time champion had been so pessimistic about his car’s big upgrade package he forecast a top half spot to be a “struggle”. By Tom Morgan, Sports News Correspondent, in Barcelona
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