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Lewis Hamilton revealed that Mercedes are gradually shifting focus to their 2023 car as the season progresses. The Briton admitted that he is already working on the changes needed in the 2023 car.
Answering Sportskeeda’s question in a post-race press conference at the French GP about the development of his car, the Mercedes driver said:
“Whilst we continue to try and dial this [year's] car in, of course, bit by bit, as we go into these next weeks - the next couple of months - the full focus will probably be into next year’s car.”
Lewis Hamilton believes there is a massive speed deficit on the straights to Red Bull
The seven-time world champion revealed that Red Bull were too quick for him with their straight-line speed. Lewis Hamilton believes he was unable to chase a win due to their performance deficit to the frontrunners and tyre conditions on the track.
Commenting on whether a win was a possibility, the Mercedes driver said:
“I was trying to keep up with Max. He was just so fast. I was kind of keeping with him for like two, maybe two laps and then, but literally, I’m full gas down the straight and he's pulling away. That's, I think, the biggest.. one of the biggest deficits was the straight line today."
He continued by detailing their performance issues compared to the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull:
"So if you’re losing four tenths, whatever it is, three tenths, whatever it is, on the straight this, there’s nothing you can do about that. So we've got to work to improve that for the future and as I'm sure there's a couple other places that we could be better.”
The Mercedes champion was 10.587 seconds behind his Dutch rival, who claimed victory at the French GP. However, by completing the 300th race of his career, the Briton secured the highest result by an F1 driver in their 300th race.
