Lewis Hamilton was, seemingly, not too crushed after settling for second place behind Red Bull's Max Verstappen at the 2022 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
The Mercedes-AMG driver took charge of the race late into its running, but a charging Verstappen closed a seven-second gap in 10 laps to charge off to the chequered flag with six remaining.It could not have been easy for Hamilton, who is still seeking a win in 2022.
Having dominated the sport with his Mercedes team between 2014 and 2021, the pendulum has swung, and this season has been all about Verstappen and Red Bull and Ferrari's inability to mount a serious challenge for both championships.Whichever way the remaining three races play out, the race around the Circuit of The Americas was Hamilton and Mercedes' best chance at victory, especially considering how off the pace they were at the start of the season.After the race, Hamilton admitted that wanting to win is not a realistic ambition, given Red Bull Racing's superior pace and the way they dominated this year."We need to be realistic," the 37-year-old said. "The Red Bull car has been the fastest by far all year."It was great to have started third and been in a position to fight for the win, but on true pace, they have been ahead of us all weekend."Stay up to speed on the latest Formula 1 news by subscribing to our FREE newsletter, 'The Undercut'Not the win he desperately wanted but Lewis Hamilton was energised by his and @MercedesAMGF1's performance in Austin ??#USGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/PnEDtc0IiKUpdates are workingWith their season starting poorly, Mercedes-AMG began an upgrade process to close the performance gap to Red Bull and Ferrari.