Lewis Hamilton will be disappointed with his starting position in Bahrain, although his W15 machine is optimised for race day.
Hamilton and Mercedes captured all the F1 news headlines yesterday by going fastest in Practice 2. However, the 7-time World Champion failed to put the W15 at the very front in today’s qualifying session.
At face value, this result is obviously disappointing. Teammate George Russell managed to finish in P3, evidencing the potential within the car.
However, Hamilton explained that taking opposite set-up directions contributed to today’s disparity.
Considering this year’s challenger represents a new challenger for Mercedes, experimentation is inevitable.
Because of this, some divergence can be expected in the set-ups at the Brackley squad’s garage.
When speaking to the media post-qualifying, Hamilton made clear that he made the conscious choice to prioritise the race.
Although this does not fully explain his starting position, it certainly provides context.
Hamilton focused on race day
The 39-year-old remains upbeat, hopeful that sacrificing low-fuel running will improve his chances tomorrow:
“I think George’s position and pace really highlights, and is a real testament to the team, how hard everyone has worked over winter.
“It’s amazing to have a car we can fight with. It really unites the fire and flame within us drivers,” he told Sky Sports.
“For me, Bono and everyone did a great job, and I struggled in qualifying today.
“Yesterday was really good. Me and George were on the same setup, but he went left, and I went right.
“Right was definitely not good for a single lap. But I felt more comfortable with more fuel, so I hope that reflects tomorrow.
“I’ve definitely sacrificed more than I hoped to, and I hope it pays off tomorrow.
“It’s a lot of work to do to get past all those quick cars ahead of me, but it will be fun.”
Numerous challengers behind Verstappen
In many ways, the timing sheets from today’s final qualifying shootout are misleading. At face value, Max Verstappen remains at the very top with a very strong Red Bull car.
With that said, rivals – including Mercedes and Ferrari – closed the gap over the winter. Unlike at this stage in 2023, the top-5 are all working with baselines that can be trusted to facilitate long-term growth.
This means that Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes can push ahead with development without having to make short-term sacrifices.
Whilst Verstappen still enjoys an advantage, he is now within striking range.
Tomorrow will prove which teams can become the biggest nuisance to the Dutchman, but there is no shortage of potential for an exciting season opener.
Regarding the two Silver Arrows, time will tell if Russell’s set-up choice will impact his performance in the Grand Prix.
