Lewis Hamilton has admitted that it is going to take Mercedes “the rest of the year to close gap” on reigning champions Red Bull.
Having won six championships through a golden period with Mercedes, Hamilton failed to win a race last year, for the first time in a glittering career.
Neither he nor teammate George Russell managed a podium in this year's season-opening races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso placing third behind both Red Bull drivers each time.
Mercedes have admitted they got their car concept wrong and have gone back to the drawing board as they again play catch up with Max Verstappen and Co. “If you look at the Red Bull, it is just going to continue to evolve most likely,” said the 38-year-old Briton “Some cars do plateau in terms of performance.