Lewis Hamilton not worried about being outperformed by Mercedes teammate George Russell
- Planet Sport writer
- 21 March 2023
Mercedes ace Lewis Hamilton was nonchalant when discussing the fact he finished behind teammate George Russell at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and blamed a bad strategy call.
Russell has been something of a revelation at struggling Mercedes and his constant optimism has been a stark contrast to Hamilton's near-constant complaining.
Of course, a lot can be explained by how each of them ended up in this position with Hamilton looking for his eighth Drivers' Championship title while Russell is just happy to be at a top team after years of struggling at Williams.
Even still, Russell outperforming Hamilton is nothing new. Though he finished lower in the Drivers' Championship standings last season, Russell claimed Mercedes only win of the season in 2022 and has been the better driver in both races so far this campaign.
Hamilton would not be drawn in to comment on Russell finishing above him again except to say: "Well, it's nothing to do with me. But it's good for the team, sure."
In explaining why he was unable to overtake Russell and even began falling behind him as the race wore on, Hamilton said it was simply a matter of a bad strategy call.
"There was like a 50-50 choice," Hamilton told Sky Sports. "I chose one way and he chose another.
"More often than not, the way he went is the wrong one. But it just happened to work.
"So I could only match his pace [rather] than be quicker this weekend. But I'll work hard to make sure we are in a better place next time."
