Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff disconsolate after grim day for Mercedes in Bahrain - 'One of our worst days'

Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff cut disconsolate figures after a grim day for Mercedes at the Bahrain GP that showcased their lack of competitiveness on the F1 grid. After a difficult 2022 in which Mercedes struggled badly with a bouncing car, hopes had been high for something of a rebirth as the teams assembled in the Gulf. Ad But the early noises were not all that promising, and those fears seemed well-founded on race day as Hamilton finished fifth, while team-mate George Russell trailed in seventh, some distance behind race winner, Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who looks set to dominate the sport again in 2023.

Bahrain Grand PrixAlonso pips Red Bulls in second practice in Bahrain03/03/2023 AT 17:57 And there was no sugar-coating afterwards — from Wolff or the drivers — about their current malaise. «That was one of our worst days in racing,» Wolff, who has admitted his team need to change course, said. «It was not good at all; we are lacking pace front, right, and centre.

»The Aston Martins are very fast, and the Red Bull is just on a different planet. «It hurts that they are so far ahead; it reminds me of our best years where we put one second on everyone else. »That is the benchmark.

We need to put one foot in front of the other to come back but nobody in this team will throw in the towel. «We need to dig deep, deeper than we ever have done before. And we can do that.» Hamilton, similarly downbeat, said: «The Ferraris were just quicker than us today, we were the fourth-fastest team.