Lewis Hamilton says Mercedes need to improve their performance over a single lap after he finished today’s practice session outside the top 10.
He ended a close second practice session six tenths of a second slower than pace-setter Max Verstappen, but only 11th in the classification.“We’re fighting as hard as we can, I would say it was a difficult P1 and P2 just getting on top of the tyres and the deg,” said Hamilton.
The team is running its updated W14 for the second weekend after it debuted in Monaco, albeit on a different, much faster circuit.
“It’s so different from last week,” said Hamilton. “I think the long run pace didn’t look terrible and we’ve just got to figure out how we can extract more on a single lap.
“From the pace I had today it’s a struggle for me currently to get into the top 10. But hopefully we’ll do some changes overnight, it’s very close between us and that like middle after P5 back to P10.”
George Russell, who was eighth-quickest, also doesn’t expect Mercedes to be particularly competitive in qualifying.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
“I don’t think there is a fight for pole with anyone on this grid,” he said. “That’s the way things are at the moment.
“I think it’s going to be tight. There’s a few cars who are definitely fast on Saturday. I think Alpines are looking really strong. So between us, Ferrari and Alpine, it’s going to be tight.
“Then maybe you’ve got Nico [Hulkenberg] who was really quick today, I don’t know where that came from. But we saw that in Miami, Kevin [Magnussen] qualified ahead of us but then things changed on Sunday.
“So I don’t expect us to be having an incredible day tomorrow, but I certainly expect us to be having a better Sunday than Saturday. So that’s what we’re gearing up for.”
Russell complained about his car porpoising at several points on the circuit during practice. He said the team addressed the problem by raising the car’s ride height.
“I think we’re just pushing the ride height on the car, to be honest. We solved it for the second half of the session just by lifting that a little bit. It’s really bumpy through that final corner so it’s a little bit sketchy through there. Same for everyone.”
Bringing the F1 news from the source
RaceFans strives to bring its readers news directly from the key players in Formula 1. We are able to do this thanks in part to the generous backing of our RaceFans Supporters.
By contributing £1 per month or £12 per year (or the equivalent in other currencies) you can help cover the costs involved in producing original journalism: Travelling, writing, creating, hosting, contacting and developing.
We have been proudly supported by our readers for over 10 years. If you enjoy our independent coverage, please consider becoming a RaceFans Supporter today. As a bonus, all our Supporters can also browse the site ad-free. Sign up or find out more via the links below:
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
2023 Spanish Grand Prix
- Ben Sulayem raises safety concerns over “too many people on the grid” at races
- Why Ferrari say their change in design is the result of “discipline”, not “copying”
- Hamilton and Russell were seeking tow from Sainz when they collided – Mercedes
- Red Bull’s Spanish GP diffuser update was ‘inspired by rivals’ including Williams
- Why McLaren always doubted second-row start in Spain would lead to points finish
melanos
2nd June 2023, 23:11
The beer can regattas await when F1 becomes too tough
Dan
3rd June 2023, 5:02
Has Mercedes finally hit the dreaded period of entropy?