Lewis Hamilton has praised Mercedes for staying true to its design decisions for the 2023 season rather than copying other teams.
Mercedes have carried over several concepts introduced from the troubled W13 car to their new W14, including their unique narrow sidewalls, as they look to tap into the untapped potential from last season.
In contrast, the designs of many teams for 2023 have adopted a clear convergence towards the philosophy preferred by Red Bull, who dominated both championships last year.
But Hamilton said he was proud Mercedes was keeping faith with its bold approach to design.
“I don’t believe we were ever a team that copied other people,” said the seven-time world champion.
“We’ve always been independent and we’ve always been a team that’s incredibly creative and innovative and likes to do it our way. I think it worked in the past,” he pointed out.
“You can see that some of the cars are getting closer to what Red Bull will look like, except from Ferrari. Last year we arrived and we were like ‘damn that looks fast’ and then it wasn’t with all the problems we had.”
“Then I come into the second season with a car that looks similar in many aspects, because many elements are difficult to change. But you have to trust the engineers, and I do,” he noted.
“We stick to it, we continue with it and I hope that when I come in, he will have the characteristics that we were looking for. But if not, we will find a way.”
“The job of engineers and drivers is to find solutions. Are we ready for what if?”
“The difficult thing is that you don’t have a crystal ball, so you never know what awaits you. All you can do is prepare and be present and work hard to solve whatever the problem is,” said Lewis Hamilton.
