Despite finishing P4 today, Lewis Hamilton admitted that damage to his Mercedes W15 “compromised his race” during the 2024 Austrian GP. His Team Principal, Toto Wolff, supported this by stating, “he picked up floor damage, which caused him a loss of performance.”
Following the ‘Verstappen-Norris’ incident, Mercedes’ George Russell grabbed the lead. Meanwhile, their #1 racer crossed the chequered flag at P4 at the Red Bull Ring.
Regarding this, the seven-time F1 champion revealed his personal insights after the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix.
2024 Austrian GP Race Highlights: Lewis Hamilton
As the race kicked off today, Lewis Hamilton found himself at odds with the man he’ll replace at Ferrari- Carlos Sainz. During Lap 1, the two caused an incident for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. But, on Lap 7, he gave back the Spaniard’s position following their earlier fight. Replays later revealed that his engineers carried out the request to avoid penalty.
Following this, the Briton received a 5-second penalty for crossing the white line at pit entry. This was not ideal for the Mercedes man who was running in P5.
As the race ended, Hamilton crossed the ‘black-and-white’ line with a lap time of 1:24:45.94. This was precisely +23.142 seconds behind the ‘pole-sitter’ Russell (1:24:22.798). Above him, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri (+1.906s) crossed at P2, whilst Sainz (+4.533s) managed a podium spot for Ferrari.
However, below Hamilton, Max Verstappen (+37.253s) barely managed a P5 finish for Red Bull. This is the first time the Briton was ahead of the reigning F1 champ since the past seasons.
Lewis Hamilton insists his Mercedes damage ‘comprised his race’ before P4 finish
In the post-Austrian GP interview, Lewis Hamilton admitted that it was a ‘much deserved’ win for the Silver Arrows. He acknowledged the team’s efforts by saying that they “worked so hard to bring the performance to the car“. Beginning his media session, he started by saying:
“Congratulations to George and the team.”
“Everyone at Brackley and Brixworth really deserves this result. They have worked so hard to bring performance to the car and we are starting to get us closer and closer to the very front.”
“We put in so much effort so to get a result like this is a well-deserved reward for everyone’s efforts.”
Later on, he confessed that “it wasn’t the cleanest weekend from his side“. Specifically, he revealed that damage to his Mercedes W15 “compromised his race” during the race. Explaining this, he added:
“From my side, it wasn’t the cleanest weekend. I picked up some damage early on and that compromised my race, unfortunately.”
Despite this, Hamilton looked ahead to the British team’s next GP race at their home circuit in Silverstone. Reflecting on this, he concluded by saying:
“We now look ahead to Silverstone. It is always such a special weekend, and I can’t wait to see all the fans there.”
“It is a track that should hopefully suit us a little better than here in Austria, so let’s see what we can do.”
Toto Wolff backs up Hamilton’s claim
Taking about Mercedes’ race, Toto Wolff backed up Hamilton’s claim of a “compromised” performance. The Team Principal said that his #1 racer was “unfortunate today” as he faced a “loss of performance“. Explaining it, he said:
“Lewis, was unfortunate today.”
“Firstly, that he had to give the position back to the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz and secondly, as he picked up floor damage which caused him a loss of performance.”
“Nevertheless, he fought hard and drove a strong race to take a valuable P4.”
However, as things stand, Lewis Hamilton did manage to earn 12 points for his team. After today’s race, he is now sitting at P8 in the 2024 Driver Standings with 85 total points.
As for his next adventure, the 39-year-old will take on the Silverstone Circuit for the 2024 British Grand Prix. The racing event is the 12th round of the season, and is scheduled to take place next Sunday on July 7th.
Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas F1
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