Mercedes has been criticised for failing Lewis Hamilton in their final season together.
Hamilton will leave for Ferrari at the end of the year and hopes to win again before leaving the Silver Arrows after 11 seasons. However, this appears doubtful given that their most recent machine is still much behind the competition.
The W15 is as temperamental as its predecessors and still falls short of the Red Bull cars’ performance. Even worse, Mercedes has fallen further behind, with Ferrari and McLaren now clearly ahead of them.
Given the circumstances, former Formula One executive Mark Gallagher believes it is only normal for Hamilton to feel dissatisfied with the team. “Lewis is what he is, and that is a highly experienced seven-time champion who exists to win,” he told Mirror Sport, via Betway.
“He does not exist to qualify in the third or fourth row and possibly finish on the podium if everything goes perfectly. He’s there to win, and if things don’t go well, he’ll be hard on himself, as well as the squad. That’s what you expect from excellent drivers.”
Hamilton’s best finish from the four races so far has been ninth in the Bahrain season opener. Since then, he has finished ninth twice and failed to complete the Australian Grand Prix due to an engine problem.
Gallagher, who formerly sat on the board of Jordan Grand Prix and later worked for Jaguar and Red Bull Racing, believes Hamilton’s own performances have been “a little bit below par”. However, he believes it would be unjust to criticize the seven-time F1 champion for this given Mercedes’ failure to supply him with the tools he requires to win.
He added: “[Hamilton] is driving a car that obviously does not provide him the confidence, speed, or consistency that he desires, and they are unable to provide him with winning strategy.
“I’ve seen this before with world champions in my career: they reach a moment where a car beneath them is unable to provide them with the success they desire, and it becomes very difficult for them to appreciate where they are. It’s quite irritating when you’re used to showing up, qualifying on the front row, winning races and championships, only to see yourself slipping back in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
“The team isn’t able to offer him the car he wants, so it’s not really Lewis drooping his head or being critical of the team; he just goes to those races with no realistic prospect of even finishing on the podium right now, which is quite upsetting. It’s a difficult one for him.”
