<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=25u6g0_0wFLE65000" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=25u6g0_0wFLE65000" width="750" height="400" ></figure>Toto Wolff leapt to the Lewis Hamilton’s defense after the seven-time Formula 1 crashed early in the 2024 US Grand Prix, blaming the inconsistency of the Mercedes W15.It was another tough weekend for Mercedes as their W15 was fluctuating from session to session. Hamilton qualified seventh for the Sprint race and finished it in sixth place, but in qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix he was 19th and spun out on Lap 3, in the same manner and at the same place where his teammate George Russell crashed in Q3 of qualifying, who later on started from the pitlane and finished sixth.It was an uncharacteristic incident for Hamilton, something Wolff pointed out during his assessment of Mercedes’ race in Austin on Sunday.“It has been a tough weekend overall here in Austin,” Wolff said in Mercedes‘ race report. “We see that there is pace in the car, as was shown on Friday and with George in the race today [Sunday], but we are still dealing with its inconsistency.“That is not something unique to us, though. Different teams have come into and out of form throughout the season, but it is something we will be working hard to improve over the final five races of the season.”“It was a disappointing day for Lewis,” the Mercedes boss went on. “He wasn’t pushing at all but a gust of wind, combined with the dirty air from the car ahead, and he lost the car. We need to look at that and what happened with George yesterday [Saturday] to understand why the car reacted like that.“Lewis Hamilton is not a driver that loses a car like that on lap two of a race, so there is something there that we need to understand,” he insisted.However, Wolff could see positives in Russell’s race, who finished sixth despite even getting a five-second penalty for pushing Valtteri Bottas off the track and even driving an older spec W15.He said: “The positive from today was that George was quick throughout and produced a good fightback from his pit lane start.“The team in the garage worked hard last night to get the car ready for the race, with a large workload to get through as we had to revert on specification.“George drove a strong race and was particularly quick on the Hard compound. That enabled us to extend his first stint and ultimately claim P6 in the final few laps,” Wolff concluded.<h2>Russell: We made the best of a difficult situation</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1NoaV8_0wFLE65000" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1NoaV8_0wFLE65000" width="750" height="502" ></figure>Russell made amends after crashing in qualifying and raced from the pitlane to sixth; he reflected: “I was pleased with how today went from my side.“We didn’t know what the race would bring in terms of opportunities, but going from the pit lane to P6 and finishing ahead of Red Bull meant that we made the best of a difficult situation.“We had good pace throughout, in particular on the Hard compound tyre. We were able to extend that first stint and give ourselves fresher rubber with which to attack in the closing laps.”Russell echoed Wolff’s sentiments regarding Hamilton’s crash, blaming the W15. He seemed at a loss to explain his own spin during qualifying, which was a carbon copy of his teammate’s.“We will work hard in the coming days to analyze the weekend as a whole,” he said. “The car can still be tricky at times; Lewis doesn’t end races in the gravel as we saw today.“When we find its sweet spot, it is capable of strong performances, but that is difficult to deliver consistently. I think the car had the potential to fight for the podium this weekend, but we need to widen its operating window.“We will therefore be looking to bounce back next weekend in Mexico,” Russell concluded.<h2>Hamilton: I thought we were in for a positive race</h2><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2oMRLN_0wFLE65000" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2oMRLN_0wFLE65000" width="1920" height="1080" >Hamilton had a good start to his race and made up position on the opening lap, which led him to believe he would be enjoying a good race and a decent result, but then he spun with all his hopes ending up in the gravel trap alongside his W15.He reflected: “I had a great start, and I thought we were in for a positive race. I was just bringing the tyres in when I had the accident, which was a really strange moment.“I wasn’t pushing too hard, but the car bounced a little into turn 19. I lost the back end, and that was that. We measured a large gust of wind, up to 40 kph, as I turned in which likely didn’t help.“George had a similar spin to me yesterday so we will work hard to analyse both incidents and see what we can learn from them. I am sorry to the whole team who have worked so hard to bring these updates, but onwards and upwards from here.“Hopefully we can get the car in a better place for next week in Mexico. We will all be working incredibly hard to do so,” Hamilton concluded.Mercedes leave Austin still fourth in the 2024 F1 constructors’ championship, but not 152 behind third-placed Ferrari, who have had a rewarding weekend with their one-two finish, Charles Leclerc winning and Carlos Sainz finishing second.Maybe Ferrari’s result is the only positive thing Hamilton took away from his weekend in Austin, as it will give him hope as he enters his final stint with Mercedes before joining Ferrari in 2025.</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Wolff: Hamilton not a driver that loses a car like that

Toto Wolff leapt to the Lewis Hamilton’s defense after the seven-time Formula 1 crashed early in the 2024 US Grand Prix, blaming the inconsistency of the Mercedes W15. It was another tough weekend for Mercedes as their W15 was fluctuating from session to session. Hamilton qualified seventh for the Sprint race and finished it in sixth place, but in qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix he was 19th and spun out on Lap 3, in the same manner and at the same place where his teammate George Russell crashed in Q3 of qualifying, who later on started from the pitlane and finished sixth.