Following a disappointing United States Grand Prix at the Austin circuit, where he ended up in the gravel after only a few laps, Lewis Hamilton’s weekend in São Paulo added to a series of forgettable performances as he nears the close of his tenure with Mercedes. Frustrated, he even expressed relief that the season’s end is in sight.
The Brazilian round was arguably one of Hamilton’s most challenging weekends this season, especially for a driver renowned for his prowess in wet conditions. Just months ago, he secured a memorable victory at a wet Silverstone, demonstrating his usual mastery. However, at Interlagos, his difficulties extended beyond the rain—normally a favorable setting for the seven-time world champion. Right from the initial practice sessions, he struggled to build trust in the car, culminating in a sprint race finish outside the points. Wet or dry, a lack of confidence and persistent bouncing issues were the unyielding themes.
Upon arriving in Brazil, teams quickly recognized that the asphalt was in far worse condition than anticipated, with severe bumps prompting many to raise their cars’ ride heights. Mercedes, already running low, stiff setups (as seen in Austin), found the challenge particularly tough. Lewis Hamilton highlighted the ongoing bouncing issues again after the São Paulo weekend, attributing it to a mix of track conditions and inherent car flaws. “The bouncing is part track, part car,” he explained, “but mostly the car. Qualifying was rough, the sprint was worse, and the car was just undriveable all weekend. It’s devastating to have such challenging races, especially in the latter part of the season. All we can do is keep trying,” he added, confessing after the sprint qualifying that he had little confidence in the vehicle’s handling.
“This level of performance is simply unacceptable. We all need to take accountability—myself included. I’m pushing to do my best with what I have, but the car was just worse this weekend, and I don’t fully understand why,” he admitted.
Despite Mercedes’ general struggles—unable to challenge McLaren, Red Bull, and Ferrari even in the dry—it was evident that George Russell maintained a steadier competitive pace than Hamilton throughout the weekend. On Sunday, George Russell was even a frontrunner on wet tires, briefly leading the race by the end of lap one. According to Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes’ trackside engineering director, the British driver faced constant rear instability, evident in specific areas of the track. “We typically allow drivers room to explore setup choices. They aren’t required to take the same path; we give them freedom to evolve their setups,” Shovlin explained. “In Brazil, Lewis struggled with rear grip, especially in the sprint race, where any grip shortage leads to excess oversteer and heightened rear tire temperatures, worsening the issue.”
Data from Lewis Hamilton’s first wet qualifying run, where he was eliminated early, clearly illustrates his lack of trust in the rear of the W15, as Andrew Shovlin noted. This issue was especially evident in medium- to high-speed corners across sectors two and three. Unlike Lewis Hamilton, George Russell managed to push harder on the throttle, whereas Hamilton had to ease off more heavily. It’s also notable that drivers, including Hamilton, often maintained continuous laps during qualifying to capitalize on improving track conditions, which taxed the full wet tires, causing them to overheat.
George Russell also felt rear instability but experienced it later in the race, with over 25 laps already completed on a full fuel load. In contrast, Hamilton encountered rear grip problems from the outset, which made high-speed sections particularly challenging when lacking confidence in rear downforce.
This unpredictability in the W15, particularly in generating downforce, has been a recurring complaint for Hamilton throughout the season, even leading him to consider reverting recent updates. The upgrades Mercedes introduced in Austin, as Andrew Shovlin clarified, did not address the W15’s existing issues but simply improved the car’s baseline performance. Unfortunately, Lewis Hamilton continued to struggle with the car’s unsteady downforce generation, which manifested as a nervous, unpredictable handling experience.
With a two-week break before Las Vegas, Mercedes hopes to gain insights into resolving these issues. Notably, this information may prove more useful in the Qatar and Abu Dhabi races, where high-speed corners demand confidence and stability in the car. Both circuits feature smoother asphalt, which should enable lower ride heights and stiffer setups.
“As with every race, we’ll dedicate significant time to analyzing the data to understand the problem,” Andrew Shovlin noted. “Lewis’s engineering team will work closely with him to try and address this issue before Las Vegas.” However, he also pointed out that limited time exacerbated Hamilton’s struggles, preventing calm setup adjustments amid difficulties.
Another complicating factor was the division of the weekend’s conditions: while the sprint qualifying and race ran in hot, dry weather, the Grand Prix qualifying and race were wet. “This setup inconsistency wasn’t the cause of the issues, but it certainly didn’t help, complicating Lewis’s ability to dial in his setup for the main event.”
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