Lewis Hamilton has been the one story on the town over the winter amid his transfer to Ferrari, and left huge boots to fill at Mercedes – not simply by way of advertising heft as a seven-time world champion, but additionally in management.
Hamilton was famend for his common manufacturing unit visits to rally the troops when the crew was struggling on observe, and for his demanding strategy to technical growth.
Nonetheless, the Mercedes squad has begun a brand new chapter with Hamilton’s former team-mate George Russell and rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, with the youthful Briton stating that the ambiance is bullish at Brackley.
“Naturally, it does really feel totally different, after all,” mentioned Russell throughout a break in day one among testing in Bahrain.
“Lewis is such an enormous persona on and off the observe, however I believe all people inside the crew may be very a lot excited for this subsequent chapter, actually.
“And because the crew might look again on fond recollections, I additionally really feel grateful to have had that probability – being his team-mate for 3 years and studying a lot from him, but additionally going head-to-head with him immediately.”
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
Photograph by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Photos
Russell had but to take to the observe when he mentioned this, since new team-mate Antonelli drove the brand new W16 all through the morning session, clocking probably the most laps (78) of all drivers and the quickest lap time – not that timings are essentially vital at this stage in testing.
Ever since Hamilton introduced his departure for Ferrari, conversations have centred on what Mercedes is dropping, and what it would have already got misplaced. Dominant through the hybrid-engine period which started in 2014, it has struggled for the reason that introduction of the ground-effect aerodynamics philosophy in 2022.
Having an uncompetitive automobile the crew appeared unable to repair appeared to weigh on Hamilton, as did the aftermath of the controversial 2021 season finale the place he successfully misplaced the world championship on the ultimate lap because of a controversial choice by race management.
Final season Russell outscored Hamilton within the drivers’ championship rankings and, maybe extra considerably, outqualified him 24 out of 30 occasions. That’s a formidable feat in opposition to somebody with 104 pole positions to his identify.
Maybe that accounts for Russell’s air of quiet confidence, in addition to his fastidiously political phrasing, when requested about what life with out Lewis seems like at Mercedes.
“It seems like the tip of a chapter,” he mentioned. “However then you definately’re trying ahead to the following journey. So it is very a lot for us at Mercedes, we’re trying ahead and never backwards.”
Photographs from the Bahrain Pre-Season Testing
Learn Additionally:
On this article
Stuart Codling
System 1
Lewis Hamilton
George Russell
Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Mercedes
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