Hamilton delivers DAMNING F1 Verstappen verdict for Mercedes after Spanish GP

Matthew Hobkinson
Tuesday 6 June 2023 21:27

Lewis Hamilton has provided a damning verdict for Formula 1 and Mercedes after he admitted that it was "impossible" to catch Max Verstappen during the Spanish Grand Prix.

Verstappen led from the start in Barcelona as he drove yet another dominant race for Red Bull in the RB19.

Despite this, Mercedes still enjoyed their best result of the season after George Russell followed Hamilton over the line for a double podium.

READ MORE: Horner fires SAVAGE response over Mercedes pace after Spanish Grand Prix

Speaking after the race, Hamilton was in an upbeat mood over the team's performance, but still issued a worrisome verdict that catching up to Verstappen is still too big a stretch.

"It was like last year, but thankfully I didn't have any damage this time," he told the team's in-house media. "After that, I was trying as hard as I could to get up to second and chase down Max, but that was impossible."

"It was very hard to predict and the balance was poor on Friday," he added. "Mick [Schumacher] did some great work in the simulator back at the factory and we did some strong analysis overnight, made the set-up changes for Saturday and the car felt good."

The teams now turn their attention to Canada the following weekend, as they look to sit down and fine-tune their set-ups as best as possible before taking to the track in Montreal next time out.

READ MORE: Alonso takes aim at Hamilton with SALTY Verstappen claim