Mercedes say team ‘won’t panic or look for scapegoats’ after disappointing start to 2023 Formula 1 season

Mercedes made a disappointing start to their 2023 campaign as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were left behind by Red Bull in Bahrain; Speculation has followed Hamilton’s future with the team; watch the Saudi Arabian GP on Sky Sports F1 next weekend

Mercedes insists they will not “panic or look for scapegoats” after a disappointing start to the 2023 Formula 1 season in Bahrain last weekend.

After a torrid 2022 campaign that saw the eight-year constructors’ title ended by Red Bull, Mercedes had been bullish over the winter as they returned to contention this year, but that optimism was dashed by not only being defeated by the dominant power. champion but also Ferrari and Aston Martin.

Recriminations continued with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton publicly questioning the team’s decision to ignore advice on the design of the 2023 car, and team principal Toto Wolff describing the Bahrain GP as “one of the worst days of racing”.

With speculation surrounding Hamilton’s future with the team, along with other key staff members, the team released a letter addressed to fans on Saturday morning in an attempt to calm the situation.

The letter said: “Bahrain hurts. It hurts each of us, who every season is determined to fight for the world championship. It hurts the team as a whole, after putting hard work into a car that has not met us. hope.

“The situation we are facing now is not what we want – but what is. This is the reality. And the simple question is: what can be done, and what will be done. it?

“We will not panic or make a knee-jerk reaction. In a fierce spotlight like F1, people are quick to point fingers, or look for scapegoats. But you know we are better than that. courage to fail, character to take responsibility and strength to see failure as an opportunity.

“We have been open and honest about where we find ourselves. And we are working quickly and calmly to build our recovery plan, focusing on what needs to happen in the short, medium and long term to win. We have have developments in the pipeline for the next race – and there will be more to come. But this won’t be for a while; there is no silver bullet in F1.

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With Mercedes having made a poor start to the season, Sky F1’s Naomi Schiff thinks Hamilton is on course for a record eighth world title. You can listen to the latest episode of the Sky Sports F1 Podcast every Tuesday.

Hamilton, who finished fifth in Bahrain ahead of teammate George Russell in seventh, has repeatedly expressed his desire to stay with Mercedes in F1 beyond the end of the season, when his current contract expires.

Both 38-years-old and Wolff previously suggested agreeing an extension would be a formality, but the team’s failure to provide a car that would win the championship for a second consecutive season has fueled speculation he could opt to retire. or look for a move elsewhere.

There is also great interest in how Mercedes will proceed with the development of the W14 car after Wolff suggested in Bahrain that the team had accepted a concept that would not currently work.

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Toto Wolff said the team had one of their ‘worst days of racing’ after Mercedes finished fifth and seventh at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The statement continued: “We will keep our heads high – and take this step by step, together. We are Mercedes. We know the standards we want, and no one remembers when we see the mountain we have to climb. It will not be easy – but where is the value of simple things?

“This is a time when character is forged; a time when a team becomes greater than the sum of its parts, solves difficult problems and overcomes. women and men in factories in Brackley and Brixworth. And we love the challenge.

Hamilton and Mercedes will be back in action next weekend at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, with each session live on Sky Sports F1, starting with first practice on Friday at 1.30pm.