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Lewis Hamilton appeared to be surprised after securing a podium at the 2022 F1 Austrian Grand Prix, having finished third in the race.
Having crashed out in a rare mistake during Friday's qualifying session, the seven-time world champion was looking at a bleak weekend at the Red Bull Ring. The Mercedes driver then started today's main race from a lowly P8 after a particularly tough Sprint race on Saturday.
He, however, ran a consistent race and gradually moved up the grid throughout the race. Surviving a possible penalty after receiving the black and white flag for track limit infringements, Hamilton managed to slot his car into the remaining podium spot after Carlos Sainz's retirement.
Speaking in a post-race interview with former F1 driver David Coulthard, Lewis Hamilton thanked his team for their efforts in getting his car up to shape after the crash on Friday. He said:
“Thank you so much and what an incredible crowd we have had here this weekend. Definitely wasn’t expecting that, yesterday was a difficult day and we have had a bit of a rough weekend. As a team we got 3rd and 4th which is great points and we move forward from here.”
He continued:
“Firstly, I do want to say a really big thank you to the men and women in the garage who worked so hard to rebuild the car. I had a brand new car on Saturday morning and unfortunately it is something I don’t do too often. We made some improvements this weekend so we just have to keep chipping away at it.”
A P3 finish for Hamilton followed by a P4 finish for his teammate George Russell has delivered bountiful points for Mercedes in the Constructor Standings.
I’m dying for the day I get in the car and we don’t have bouncing: Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton has claimed that he has never been in as much discomfort in his F1 career as in Mercedes' 2022 challenger, W13. The seven-time world champion has been uncomfortable due to the massive bouncing suffered by the car following the reintroduction of the ground effect in F1's 2022 regulations.
Lewis Hamilton said:
“I’m dying for the day I get in the car and we don’t have bouncing. There’s been times when the bouncing has been so heavy that you have to lift down the straight. This was a challenge of a different kind. In the race, you can’t lift. You’re thinking of the points for the team, and how much every step in the championship means for all those that you work with. And so you just grit and take it.”
He added:
“It’s the first time in my racing career that I’ve looked at a set-up and decided to just live with a problem. That’s an unusual scenario. It took me three weeks after to feel good again but thankfully it was nothing disc-related, it was all muscle. There’s been a lot of needles stabbed in my back.”
Mercedes appears to be the team most severely hit by bouncing issues this season, with fingers being raised towards its radical 'no-sidepod' aerodynamic design concept. With the FIA now stepping in with a new technical directive to address the issue, Hamilton could hope for a resolution to his problems in the car.
