Mercedes has faced a challenging beginning to the current season, but Lewis Hamilton has provided a boost in confidence for the Brackley-based team.
Lewis Hamilton expressed an optimistic view regarding his future, stating that Mercedes has identified its “North Star” as they strive to overcome their streak of disappointing results.
Mercedes’ best performance this season remains a fifth-place finish at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
Since the introduction of new technical regulations in 2022, the Brackley-based team has struggled to consistently compete at the front, securing only one grand Prix victory over the past two years.
In the recent Miami race, Mercedes introduced upgrades to the W15, with additional new parts expected to debut in Imola this weekend.
Hamilton praised the effort from the Mercedes team as he anticipated improvements with the latest car updates.
“From my side, it’s not been great, good at all,” Hamilton told the media. “But the last race was positive and there’s a long, long way to go.
“So I’m just really excited for the developments that are coming. We’ve had a step in the last race and we’ve got a step this weekend and there’s more in the pipeline.
“I feel like we’ve found more of our North Star and what we need to do and change. It just takes time. But the energy in the team is amazing. They’re so resilient in this team. We just continue to push, even though we’ve been knocked down quite a few times.
“So we’re just going to continue to keep our heads down and stay focused and try and do the best job we can each weekend.”
This F1 season signifies Hamilton’s last with Mercedes, as he decided to conclude his highly fruitful collaboration with the German team.
Hamilton is set to join Ferrari in 2025, partnering with Charles Leclerc in his quest for a new adventure.
Despite this being the first time he’s raced in Ferrari’s homeland of Italy since the announcement, the 39-year-old emphasized that he’s maintaining his usual approach.
“I arrived at the track just exactly the same as any other weekend. I’m just excited to get on track,” he stated.
“There will be a big crowd here There always is. And they come out in full force, the Tifosi. So I’m looking forward to seeing them but I’ve not had a huge amount of time to engage with them.”
