Lewis Hamilton says he 'won't miss' Mercedes car after startling Belgian GP pace deficit

dailystar.co.uk:

Lewis Hamilton admitted he won’t miss his Mercedes W13 after he ended qualifying almost two seconds off the pace of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.The Mercedes driver could only set the seventh fastest time in Q3 at Spa with teammate George Russell one place behind.

Due to numerous drivers, including Verstappen, incurring grid penalties, the Mercedes pair will start a more encouraging fourth and fifth behind Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso.However, that was of little consolation to Hamilton, who was left downbeat by the pace deficit to Verstappen’s Red Bull, which has set the pace all weekend. READ MORE: Charles Leclerc left bemused as Ferrari admit to 'mistake' during Belgian GP qualifying After a number of upgrades and a tweak to regulations, which were expected by some to bring Red Bull and Ferrari back to the pack, the weekend has been a huge let-down for Mercedes so far. “We came here very, very optimistic that we were going to be able to be close [to the front], half a second, who knows?,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1.“To be 1.8 seconds behind is a real kick in the teeth.

It is what it is. It’s a car we continue to struggle with and I definitely won’t miss it at the end of the year." Can Mercedes win a race this year?

Have your say in the comments section below. Hamilton says he has already switched his focus to next year with nine races still left in 2022.“For me, it’s just about focusing on how we build and design next year’s car.