Lewis Hamilton hopes Mercedes are “in the mix” at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as he admits the start of his final weekend for the Silver Arrows felt “very surreal” .
Hamilton finished fifth fastest in Friday's second representative practice session under the Yas Marina floodlights, just behind Carlos Sainz in the leading Ferrari despite being six tenths clear of pacesetter Lando Norris amid McLaren's start to the event.
The seven-time champion is racing as a Mercedes driver for the last time after 12 years ahead of his winter switch to Ferrari as the 2024 season draws to a close and, after experiencing the end of -troubled race weeks recently, he was happy to put off his swan song. to a positive start.
“He felt better today. It wasn't such a bad day,” said a confident Hamilton.
“Very surreal and I've just tried to be as present as I can today and just enjoy every moment from coming to seeing the engineers and I like to take moments and capture them as much as I can.
“Then to get ready and get in the car… and I really enjoyed the day. I really enjoyed driving the car today, working with the guys in the garage and the engineers.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights from Friday's practice sessions at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
“We have some work to do. The McLaren is still so fast, as is Ferrari. We are in the mix, sort of, but we have to find some time.
“It's never that easy to prove that, but I think our long-term pace didn't look too bad today, so I'd say the positive from today – it was I'm much closer to the McLarens. On one lap I think we are I have some work to do.”
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Lewis Hamilton admitted he underestimated how difficult his final Mercedes year would be and did not handle his emotions well, ahead of his final race for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix team .
In open entry Thursdaythe Briton admitted he didn't always control his emotions in the best way during his final season at the Silver Arrows after announcing his shock Ferrari switch before the campaign had even started .
Asked how he was managing his emotions during his final weekend at Mercedes, Hamilton said: “There's no trick, I'm trying to keep my emotions under control as much as possible. as big as I can.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Catch a special two-part feature on Sky Sports this weekend celebrating 7-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton's incredible drive with Mercedes!
“I said (Thursday), I haven't been good at it this year, I've definitely been up and down – that's human emotion, that's normal – but I'm just trying to into the car, into the squad, the team I love the team so much and have wanted to do well for them for ages, but one last time.
“I won't change too much in the car tonight and hopefully (in qualifying) we'll be there or there.”
Russell: McLaren in a league of their own so far
Team-mate George Russell has certainly ended the year in more consistent form than Hamilton, but on Friday he finished three-tenths of a second behind his team-mate in 13th place on the Practice Two timesheet.
Russell – who started his weekend with a angry reaction to Max Verstappen's critical comments about him in Qatar – said it had been running experimental setups on the W15 on Friday.
“Today we had a bit of a struggle but it's only Friday,” he said.
“We're trying a lot of things in preparation for next year. Obviously, this is our last chance and we wanted to go, shall we say, a bit more radical with some of the configuration options to try and there is nothing we can learn.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
George Russell has hit back at Max Verstappen's 'bully' after they dropped the penalty in Qatar, saying someone needs to stand up to the Red Bull driver.
“So hopefully (Saturday) will be a bit more of a normal day and go from there.”
While he praised his teammate's efforts, Russell was more pessimistic about where the team finished on Friday's schedule compared to the two leading teams.
“To be honest, Lewis made some good shots out there and I still think, as a team, we're a long way from McLaren and Ferrari,” he said.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Craig Slater took a closer look at how the Qatar penalty shootout between George Russell and Max Verstappen escalated after George called the Red Bull driver a “bully”.
“McLaren seem to be in a league of their own right now.
“Like I said, Lewis did a good job but we're still four tenths behind the McLarens so that's more than we normally expect.
“So I expect Ferrari to get back in the mix, maybe Max will get back in the mix, but hopefully we can make some improvements for tomorrow.”
Sky Sports F1 Abu Dhabi GP live schedule
Saturday 7 December
8.10am: F1 Academy Race One
10.15am: Abu Dhabi GP Practice Three (session starts at 10.30am)
12.10pm: F2 Sprint Race
1.15pm: Abu Dhabi DT accreditation pick-up
2pm: GP ABU DHABI SELECT*
4pm: F1 Academy: Race Two
5pm: Ted's Testimonial Notebook
Sunday 8 December
7.10am: F1 Academy Race Three
9.20am: F2 Feature Race
11.30am: Grand Prix Sunday: Abu Dhabi GP in preparation
1pm: ABU DHABI Grand Prix
3pm: Checkered Flag: Abu Dhabi GP Response
4pm: Ted's Notebook
* also live on Sky Sports Main Event
Watch the final race of the 2024 Formula 1 season – the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – live on Sky Sports F1, with Sunday's race at 1pm. Get Sky Sports F1 or stream with NOW
Source link
