Lewis Hamilton believes he has “never seen a car so fast” as Red Bull’s RB19 in Formula 1 after the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Red Bull has dominated the opening stages of the 2023 season with the team securing back-to-back 1-2 finishes in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
That came despite Max Verstappen starting from 15th place in Jeddah due to a driveshaft failure in qualifying.
Mercedes dominated Formula 1 for several years, peaking with 19 wins from 21 races in 2016, but Hamilton feels Red Bull currently has a larger advantage.
“I don’t know it’s not for me to say, but I’ve never seen a car so fast,” he said when asked if fans may tire of the current situation.
“When we were fast we weren’t that fast. That’s the fastest car I’ve seen compared to the rest, I don’t know why or how but he [Verstappen] came past me with serious speed. I didn’t even bother to block because there was a massive speed difference.
“Of course I think everyone wants to see everyone close, but it’s the way it is. Not my problem or fault.”
Hamilton finished the race in fifth spot, replicating his result from the opener in Bahrain, while team-mate George Russell inherited third place after a penalty for Fernando Alonso.
“I’m generally happy, moved forwards after a difficult qualifying ,so to turn it into a positive today, I’ve got some points,” he said.
“I’m happy and George got a great result now with third, good points for the team. I didn’t have the car set-up right this weekend, George had the right set-up, I need to work to make sure I have it in the right direction next time.”
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