Lewis Hamilton claims Mercedes ‘didn’t listen’ to his concerns over new F1 car

Lewis Hamilton has claimed Mercedes “did not listen” to him over the development of this season’s underperforming Formula One car.

The seven-time world champion finished fifth in the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday, over 50 seconds behind the race winner, Max Verstappen. With Red Bull dominant again, Hamilton also found himself outpaced by Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz at the Sakhir circuit.

It was a sobering weekend for Hamilton, who complained before the season-opening race that Mercedes were on the “wrong track”. Having added after the result that their 2023 model was “not the right car”, he renewed his public criticism of the team’s recent strategy on Wednesday.

“Last year, there were things I told them. I said the issues that are with the car,” Hamilton told the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast on Wednesday. “I’ve driven so many cars in my life. I know what a car needs. I know what a car doesn’t need.

“I think it’s really about accountability,” the 38-year-old added. “It’s about owning up and saying, ‘Yeah, you know what? We didn’t listen to you. It’s not where it needs to be and we’ve got to work’”.

“We’ve got to look into the balance through the corners, look at all the weak points and just huddle up as a team. That’s what we do,” Hamilton added. “We’re still [multiple] world champions … just haven’t got it right this time. Didn’t get it right last year. But that doesn’t mean we can’t get it right moving forwards.”

Hamilton’s team principal, Toto Wolff, admitted in Bahrain that the Silver Arrows, who won eight consecutive constructors’ championships prior to last season, will have to abandon their controversial “zero-sidepod” concept in order to challenge again.

Most of the grid have followed