Lewis Hamilton didn’t hide his frustration after the 2023 Brazilian Grand Prix Sprint Race, where he struggled with the lack of pace in his Mercedes and grappled with tire degradation. The 103-time Grand Prix winner started in fifth place at Interlagos but slipped to seventh by the final lap, overtaken by Charles Leclerc and Yuki Tsunoda, while narrowly staying ahead of Carlos Sainz and Daniel Ricciardo.
In the closing stages of the race, even Hamilton’s teammate George Russell outperformed him, as his Mercedes lacked grip. Hamilton finished nine seconds behind, a stark contrast to being just two seconds behind on Lap 15 of 24. He shared his insights on what led to his drop in pace.
Hamilton explained, “I don’t know, I just think we got a good start. Then when I’m trying to get the right balance of the wing, and just got a lot of understeer and a lot of oversteer. In the middle sector, huge understeer. I don’t know whether we set up the wrong setup; we probably did the set-up wrong. I don’t think it’s going to be much worse [for Sunday’s race], but it’s one of those circuits that are challenging for tires.”
The degradation experienced was unusual for Hamilton at this track, which added to his frustration. He expressed his disappointment that the car didn’t perform as expected.
Understeer, a condition where the front of the car doesn’t turn as desired, was a significant issue, causing increased tire wear and making it difficult for Hamilton to execute his late-braking techniques effectively. Despite challenges, some drivers prefer understeer for its predictability.
With the Mercedes cars locked in parc fermé, Hamilton has limited options to address the problem before the Sunday race. The Brazilian Grand Prix will kick off at 14:00 local time in Sao Paulo, offering fans around the world a thrilling spectacle to look forward to.