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Guenther Steiner believes Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes should accept that they cannot win relentlessly. The Haas team principal was surprised at the reaction of the Briton and his team to their poor start to the 2023 season.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, the German said:
“Your team cannot always just win. It’s human. It’s a competition. Formula One is not Formula Mercedes! Mercedes had eight good years and nothing is forever, as we all know. Being surprised or not accepting that you go backwards is something I find very strange. You need to regroup and try again."
"But you cannot expect or demand to be [the best]… because we won it eight times now we are going to win it nine times. No. And the same for Lewis. You spent eight years in the best or one of the best cars and you won championships. You cannot always win, and also you lost the championship once to your team-mate as well in that time. Never forget that one. Your team cannot always win.”
Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton were quick to react after the Bahrain GP when they were surprised with their performance deficit to their rivals. Steiner feels their reactions and response to their performance and their car since Bahrain had surprised him.
He believes the Briton and his team have had a long winning streak and it can't remain the same forever. The German reckons the Silver Arrows team needs to gracefully accept defeat, regroup, and refocus on winning again.
A former F1 team manager deems Lewis Hamilton behavior childish
In an exclusive interview with Spanish publication El Confidencial, Joan Villadelprat called out Lewis Hamilton for his childish behavior when defeated.
The former McLaren and Ferrari team manager feels the Briton’s reaction to the defeat could be childish and could break his confidence very easily. He pointed out that the seven-time world champion starts losing confidence in his tools, when beaten by a rival or teammate.
Commenting on the Briton’s performance and mindset, Villadelprat said:
“Hamilton is fed up and, if he doesn’t win, he’s like a spoiled little boy: you either win or you break the toys. He’s a whiner, you know. The tyres, the strategy, he questions everything, and he has screwed up. When you have a [teammate] who is faster than you, it is normal to be quiet and put your head under your wing."
"I think he hasn’t lost but, after seven titles… What motivates you? Well, win another. And you’re not going to risk your skin if you don’t have that car. What is evident is that Hamilton is not the same as his first or second championship.”
Lewis Hamilton has had a winless streak since the inaugural Saudi Arabian GP victory in 2021. After losing the 2021 title to Max Verstappen, the Briton was also defeated by his teammate George Russell in 2022 in the driver’s championship. Apart from Russell, the only teammates to have defeated the seven-time world champion have been Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg.
