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Lewis Hamilton feels that if there was any extra money left in the Mercedes budget last season, it could have been used for extra performance and hence change the championship outcome.
The Mercedes driver kept a quiet profile last weekend in the entire cost-cap debate involving Red Bull. This weekend, though, he provided his take on the possibility of Mercedes having any extra money available in the budget. He said:
“If we had spent $300,000 on a new floor or an adapted wing it would have changed the outcome of the championship, naturally, because we would have been in better competition in the next race you had it on. So I hope that that’s not the case, for the sport.”
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Hamilton also talked about how Red Bull was continuously bringing upgrades last season while Mercedes did not bring anything post-Silverstone. He said:
“I don’t want to say anything really but what can say is I remember last year in Silverstone we had our last upgrade and fortunately it was great and we could fight with it. But then we would see Red Bull every weekend or every other weekend bringing upgrades. They had, I think, at least four more upgrades from that point.”
Lewis Hamilton hopes F1 continues to be transparent for fans
Lewis Hamilton also talked about having more transparency in the sport and hoped the incumbent FIA president will ensure due process is followed. He said:
“I think we need to continue to have transparency for the fans and the integrity of the sport. I don’t really know enough about it, I know there’s a lot of conversations going on in the background, different numbers and things here and there. I was expecting those results, like you, to come out yesterday.”
The seven-time world champion further added:
“I would like to think that if it’s been delayed, it’s been taken very seriously, and I really trust [FIA president] Mohammed [Ben Sulayem] will do his job seriously and do what is right for the sport I hope. Yeah, I think it would be bad for the sport if action wasn’t taken if there’s a breach. I don’t know if there is. I’ll wait for Monday.”
Lewis Hamilton currently finds himself sixth in the drivers' standings with a rather disappointing second half of the season. The Mercedes driver will consequently be hoping to secure a strong result in Suzuka.
