Starting from ninth on the grid after a challenging qualifying session, the 2024 Bahrain GP didn’t unfold as expected for Hamilton, whose W15 faced cooling problems and a malfunctioning seat during the race.
Finishing in seventh place, with teammate George Russell securing fifth, Hamilton later admitted race day in Bahrain did not go as hoped.
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“No definitely wasn’t ideal today [or] this weekend,” said the seven-time world champion. “We thought we were going to be closer, but clearly not, so to be kind of the same, if not… actually I can’t remember where we finished last year, I think it was fourth and fifth.
“I think if I’d qualified better, I think that’s probably where we would have finished today, or at least fifth and sixth probably, but not much more to it.”
At the beginning of the weekend, Hamilton had hinted that his on-track challenges might have been due to “risks” taken with his car’s set-up. With this, the 39-year-old was questioned about whether, had the team not made certain strategic choices or had reliability issues in Saturday’s race, did he believe Mercedes had advanced with their 2024 car.
“I definitely think we’ve got a… I need to go and look and see,” responded Hamilton. “The others look quick and it looked very close between us and McLaren and Aston Martin, so I think we’ve got a lot of work to do.
“It was a pretty average race as you can see, but I gave it everything and I feel good within myself.”
Looking ahead Hamilton will be hoping for improved prospects as the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix approaches in the week ahead.
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