Both Mercedes drivers were satisfied after making solid gains during the Miami Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton was left frustrated after his worst qualifying since Imola last year in 13th, but, on the same strategy as Max Verstappen, made a late charge through the field to finish sixth on race day.
“It was definitely difficult to start just being in a DRS train with a bunch of cars and trying to get past the Williams [Alex Albon], which is so quick on the straight,” he explained.
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“But eventually, I was able to start making headway, and then once I’d done the stop I was able to really start to push.
“The car came a bit alive midway through the race, and I think to get from 13th to sixth – I’m pretty happy with that.
“Unfortunately, we started so far behind, but I enjoyed the race. I had a lot of fun just making my way through. It’s nice to be able to have a battle with people and good points for the team.”
As for teammate George Russell, he too produced a strong Sunday to finish fourth after a battle with Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
Do you think @GeorgeRussell63 enjoyed this move? ?#MiamiGP #F1 @MercedesAMGF1 pic.twitter.com/39aVmyQWIy
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 8, 2023
“I’m feeling pumped, to be honest, because it’s been a little while since we’ve had a race like that where we made some good overtakes stick and, relatively speaking, were strong and I felt good in the car,” he said afterwards.
“So yeah, for sure, it was a satisfying one – I would have liked to have been three positions higher, but we know the position we are in as a team right now and P4 was the maximum today.”
The next race at Imola is set to be a crucial one for Mercedes, as they introduce a raft of major upgrades to the W14, including revised sidepods, floor and front suspension.
However, both Hamilton and Russell denied it would deliver the performance to suddenly challenge Red Bull’s dominance.
“Well, it’s all a bit of an unknown. It’s not like I have a one-second upgrade coming, which is what I need,” the seven-time world champion commented.
“But it’s something. It’s a step in the right direction, hopefully, for us to really be able to progress.”
Russell agreed, adding: “There are a lot of expectations on Imola but at the end of the day, we finished 30-odd seconds behind the leaders today and we still finished quite a bit behind Fernando [Alonso].
“I am sure it is going to take a step in the right direction but it is not going to transform things. Let’s hope it does.
“The car is a little unpredictable at the moment so hopefully it exceeds our expectations in the next race but it is going to be a long journey.”