Lewis Hamilton admits there is “disappointment” within the Mercedes team after ending Formula 1’s Bahrain Grand Prix further behind Red Bull than expected.
Mercedes has committed to a complete revamp with its 2024 car, the W15, as it bids to bridge the 451-point deficit that existed to the reigning champions last term.
Both drivers had given positive assessments of the latest package in testing, which was followed up with a 1-2 in FP2 and George Russell placing third on the grid.
But despite Max Verstappen’s pole position margin ending up as two-tenths, the Dutchman romped to the win with a margin of 22s over team-mate Sergio Perez.
Meanwhile, Russell dropped to fifth and was 46.7s behind Verstappen in the lead Mercedes, with Hamilton two positions and 3.6s back from his British compatriot.
“I think we probably feel a little bit of disappointment within the team,” Hamilton told Sky F1. “I was definitely hoping we would be better this weekend than we were.
“It was a tough race. It’s very close with everybody. Degradation is, obviously, high with the car. There’s definitely plenty of areas in which we can improve.
“We’re obviously further back to the Red Bulls than we thought we were as well.”
Hamilton concedes that Mercedes didn’t have the pace to trouble either Red Bull or Ferrari in race trim, despite having compromised one-lap pace with his set-up.
The seven-time champion had struggled to make progress from his starting spot of ninth but sustained a stronger end to the race and almost pipped Lando Norris.
“I mean, the car’s reliable, but I think it was a struggle in the car today,” he assessed.
“I was giving everything, but there wasn’t a lot of performance there compared to some of the others ahead of us.
“I think if I qualified better, I naturally would have been a good couple of places ahead, because the last stint was good.
“So it was about discovery today. I found out a lot about the car and there’s a lot that we can improve on I’m sure the team will.”
Hamilton and Russell’s prospects were thwarted by a miscalculation Mercedes made on cooling that forced both drivers to lift and coast at the expense of lap time.
Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff revealed that it cost the pair up to half-a-second per lap, but he still conceded that the “pace was worse than we expected”.
“Given the issues, I think this is where we are,” he added. “Third-quickest team behind the Ferraris and the Red Bull, obviously galaxies away from Max. So we need to analyse.”
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