Hamilton says McLaren's pace is a wake-up call

SILVERSTONE, England : McLaren's pace in British Grand Prix qualifying is another wake-up call for Mercedes as they struggle for performance, seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton warned on Saturday.

Britain's Lando Norris qualified a stunning second and Australian rookie team mate Oscar Piastri third in a revised car and on a drying Silverstone track, with Mercedes's George Russell and Hamilton sixth and seventh.

"If you just put it (the McLaren) alongside a Red Bull, it looks very, very similar down the sides. It's working. It is great," said ex-McLaren driver Hamilton.

"It's not a blow. It’s just a wake-up call for us all that others are overtaking us and we need to do more," he told reporters.

Mercedes are second in the championship, but 199 points behind Red Bull, and are struggling to beat teams using the German manufacturer's engines.

Mercedes-powered Aston Martin were the revelation of the early rounds, with Fernando Alonso standing on the podium six times in nine races, and they remain only three points behind.

McLaren, with their heavily upgraded Mercedes-powered car, could provide similar shocks.

Mercedes-powered Williams also appear to be waking up from their long slumber with Alex Albon quick in practice and qualifying a competitive eighth.

"It seems like they have made a massive step in understanding and performance," Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said of McLaren.

Norris finished fourth in Austria last weekend, with Russell seventh and Hamilton eighth, but the jury remained out amid suggestions that result was track specific given McLaren's strong past form there.

Silverstone may have forced a rethink.

"I think it's very encouraging to see that Aston Martin found massive chunks of lap times from last year to this