Hamilton: “I had the pace to win”
For the first time this season, the Mercedes seemed to be lagging behind the competition. Reliability was also lacking, affecting Lewis Hamilton this time. Nico Rosberg couldn't do better than 4th.
In Monza, Nico Rosberg’s engine went up in smoke. This time, it’s Lewis Hamilton who was betrayed by his machinery. Indeed, Mercedes’ mechanics identified the problem that afflicted the world championship leader: « Lewis’s issue was diagnosed as a loss of boost pressure caused by the breakage of a clamp between the cooler and the plenum. »
However, Lewis Hamilton did not lose his optimism, even going so far as to say he could win against Ferrari and Red Bull: “The race was going very well. For me, I felt like I was driving at my best during the race. I think I had the pace to win. I was giving it my all. I was on softs and easily maintained the gap with the guys in front who were on super softs. My pace was really good when I started to lose power.”
Nevertheless, his team director, Toto Wolff, reminds that the top three in the race were managing their tires after the safety car and were therefore not looking to widen the gap on the two Mercedes: « As soon as we started driving on Friday, we were on the defensive and we improved a little today. There were moments in the race where our pace looked good. But the guys in front were managing their tires. We have to be realistic about our level of performance on this circuit. »
As for Nico Rosberg, his race was complicated from the start laps when his engine stopped: « The beginning of the race was chaotic. During the warm-up laps, my engine cut out several times. I was unable to use the same start procedure, for which I had trained 100 times. I had to adapt, but it worked since I managed to keep my position. »
Nevertheless, he is puzzled by the fact that he did not understand why he was never able to threaten the top three: « We were off the pace for the whole race and Lewis’s car had to retire. So I really hope it was exceptional circumstances and that our car didn’t suit this track and these conditions. The problem is that we don’t really understand why Red Bull and Ferrari were so much faster. »
Mercedes will therefore have less than a week to find the answer and resume their forward march at the Suzuka Grand Prix. In the meantime, Nico Rosberg has nonetheless managed to slightly reduce the gap he had on his teammate in the Drivers’ Championship.
