Lewis Hamilton warns Max Verstappen: "I'm prepared for championship battle; no W14 Plan B”
Once again, Mercedes head into a new F1 season on the b♒ackfoot, with their W14 someway off Red Bull’s RB19.
While the porpoising issues of last year haven’t re🌄-surfaced, as it stands, Mercedes don’t seem to have the pace to challenge for the win in Bahrain this weekend.
While the pecking order is still unclear, many have tipped Mercedes to be in a fight with Asto❀n Martin to be the third-fast𝕴est team.
Regardless of Mercedes’ 𝕴overall performance, Hamilton says he’sꦓ ready for a title fight.
“We will find out in the next couple of days for what is realistic,” he told Sky. “But that’s what I have prepared for. I have𝄹 prepared myself for a championship battle. Whether or not we have the equipment for a championship battle? We will find out. But I do believe that I have the team, still, who are championship worthy. We will keep our heads down.
“Last year we were in panic mode - ‘what is the issue? Fix it!’ It took us forever to fully understand it. This year, we start with a car that doesn’t bounce but it is similar to last year’s c⛦ars. But there are positives. It is a good foundation to work on.”
There was speculation🦩 follo🧜wing testing that Mercedes have a ‘Plan B’ car in reserve should their current concept not work.
“I saw people talking aﷺbout a Plan B, there isn’t a Plan B, it’s complete ru🐠bbish,” he added.
“We are living in a time of the cost cap. To re-do and redesign a car you have to go back to square one, ꦑand we don’t have time in the season to do that.
“We will continue to evolve and build the 💙car, and push it to its absolute limit. I know I’ve got the best team behind me to close the gap. It’s about finding that performance as fast as we can.”
With a sh🐓arp eye for F1’s controversies and storylines, ♐Connor is the heartbeat of our unbiased reporting.
