Toto Wolff all the time stated it was going to be unusual watching Lewis Hamilton race within the pink of Ferrari – and it appears the Mercedes boss has nonetheless not fairly come to phrases with it.
Hamilton, who received six of his seven F1 world championships with Mercedes earlier than leaving for Maranello this winter, struggled on his debut for the Scuderia on the Australian Grand Prix final weekend.
Just a few miscommunications along with his new race engineer Riccardo Adami, a daring tyre name that didn’t repay and a lowly tenth place end was not the type of begin the Briton would have hoped for down below.
However, in former boss Wolff, Hamilton did at the very least have one further, surprising cheerleader on the pit wall as he was fast to examine his tempo in addition to that of Mercedes duo George Russell and rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
“After I was trying on the screens at instances, the best way I checked out it was like we had three drivers,” stated Wolff.
“As a result of I used to be R, U, S, I used to be A, N, T, and I used to be H, A, M, and also you realise H, A, M is definitely with Ferrari and isn’t with us anymore.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes, Pierre Gasly, Alpine
Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photographs
“So it nonetheless feels, it was such a very long time, it is logical, you can’t simply say he is gone and you do not care anymore.
“We very a lot care how he is doing, however clearly on monitor he is the competitors and we have to beat the competitors.”
As soon as Wolff has misplaced that muscle reminiscence of checking for Hamilton’s progress, he’ll nonetheless little doubt monitor McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri given their velocity benefit in Melbourne.
“I believe it is a stable first weekend,” stated Wolff, with Russell ending third behind winner Norris and Max Verstappen, whereas Antonelli was reinstated to a formidable fourth after a profitable enchantment towards a five-second penalty.
“However it all the time from the glass half-empty aspect, it’s a must to say that the tempo of the McLaren is simply very robust. One thing which we have to perceive, the best way they’re able to handle the tyres and extract efficiency – we have to get higher.
“If we need to combat, on advantage, for race victories and for a championship, then there’s undoubtedly one thing which we have to discover.”
Learn Additionally:
On this article
Mark Mann-Bryans
Method 1
Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari
Mercedes
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