Lewis Hamilton has reiterated comments he made almost immediately after signing for Mercedes last season – that he is prepared to wait for wins.
The Briton, who has been touring the team’s facilities this week and addressing staff ahead of the new season, says he knows he must be patient as it’s unlikely the they’ll have made up the necessary gains over the winter to be in a position to win races in 2013.
“This is a marathon, not a sprint,” he said on Friday. “It’s the long haul. I hope that this year we can be competitive. If we arrive at the first race and we are in front, it’s going to be spectacular, but if we are not we know we just have to keep working at it.
“I’m pretty sure that I do [have the patience]. You have got to remember that I had a couple of half dodgy cars, one particular year 2009, but it did get better so perseverance is going to be key for all of us.”
Hamilton is hoping his experience at McLaren, where he had a race winning car during each of his seasons in F1, will allow him to give constructive feedback during pre-season testing.
“I hope to have quite a big impact in those first days of driving the car. Because I’ll be able to compare one car to the other and say what we do and don’t have and what the car is and how it could be better,” he added.
“It’s important to be realistic. I know that the guys are working as hard as they can and every little bit counts so that’s what they’re working for.”
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