Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time Formula 1 world champion, expressed his disappointment with Mercedes’ performance at the Miami Grand Prix practice sessions. As always, he was none too shy to air what he thought about it.

In Practice One, George Russell and Hamilton led in a surprise one-two finish, but the second session saw Mercedes’ difficulties return as the latter finished seventh, 0.928 seconds behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen’s leading time, with Russell in 15th place.

Comments of Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton referred to the team’s performance as a “kick in the guts” in an interview and stated that they were not particularly quick. He said they were virtually struggling to keep up with their competitors.

Despite trying various approaches, the Briton claimed that the true pace of the car was lacking, which was hard for him to accept. However, he remained optimistic and hoped to make changes to the setup to improve the car’s performance.

George Russell’s Struggles

Russell also struggled during the second practice session, describing his car’s behavior as “three-wheeling” through Turn Two. He acknowledged the team’s problems in aligning the car’s elements and hoped to make improvements overnight.

Russell believes that if they get things right, Mercedes could still surpass Ferrari and Aston Martin in the race.

Red Bull’s Dominance

Verstappen and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc surpassed Hamilton in Practice Two, with the reigning world champ finishing over a second ahead of his teammate Sergio Perez, who is trailing him by six points in the championship race.

Expectations of Lewis Hamilton for the Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton pointed out that he is approaching the qualifying day with no expectations, hoping only to get the car into a better shape. He is just looking to be part of the rest of the Miami events, given the difficulties he experienced with the W14 this weekend.