Lewis Hamilton: Red Bull a huge threat in 2014 Formula 1 title race
Lewis Hamilton says Mercedes must now brace itself for a 'big' Formula 1 title fight with Red Bull, despite the Brackley-based team comfortably winning the first two races of 2014
The Briton secured Mercedes' second consecutive win of the season in the Malaysian Grand Prix, just a fortnight after Nico Rosberg triumphed in Australia.
But although Mercedes' competitive advantage seems large right now, Hamilton says he has no doubts that Red Bull is on the verge of a breakthrough that will make it part of the title fight.
"Sebastian [Vettel] was massively quick here," said Hamilton. "He was applying pressure to Nico.
"Looking at their pace, their car is just as quick as ours through the corners. They are just slower on the straights.
"I have no doubts at all that Renault are going to fix that and, when they do, you are going to see a big race between us and the Bulls.
"They still have a fantastic car. I have looked at the GPS - they are the same speed through all the corners.
"And also Ferrari are not too far off as well. It is going to hot up during the year."
Mercedes has been open about its surprise at Red Bull's progress rate since its winter testing woes, and Hamilton says the pressure from its rival is real.
It means Mercedes needs to work on an aggressive development push if it is to stave off the threat.
"I am going to keep pushing my team to continue developing and improving the car," he said.
"There are plenty of places we can improve upon, and I am sure everyone else is doing the same thing.
"This car was fantastic this weekend. I felt like I got every bit that I needed from it."
PRACTICE LESSONS KEY TO WIN
Hamilton reckons the lessons he took on board after Friday practice in Malaysia - when Rosberg had carried out a better race run - were key to him beating his team-mate this time out.
"On long run pace you could see our long run in FP2," he said. "Nico went a lap longer and was generally similar pace, so I was expecting that in this race.
"But from that running I learned a lot about where I could improve. It is one thing learning it, but being able to apply it doesn't always work.
"But here it worked and that is why I was pulling away."
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
How Haas delivered its F1 "game changer"
Horner: Red Bull’s 2026 F1 engine project “hitting targets”
The ironic reason Newey thinks Red Bull hasn't been caught in F1 yet
Hamilton: MotoGP and F1 shared events would be “epic”
Leclerc F1 clash damage derailed Japanese GP hopes, says Hamilton
The status factor that made Ferrari impossible for Hamilton to turn down
Verstappen: 'Not smart' to pick returning China for F1 sprint weekend
Interview: Newey’s vision on what F1 should be
The three factors behind Verstappen overturning Perez's real Suzuka advantage
Ranking the top 10 BTCC title deciders
Marquez: Age a key factor in Quartararo's new Yamaha MotoGP deal
"Complete s***show" - Does the DTM test still make sense in its current form?
F1 publishes sustainability gains amid 2030 net zero push
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
The secrets of F1 turbocharging explained
Why Alpine’s rigorous training camp yields telling insights into its juniors
Ranking Derek Warwick’s top 10 greatest races
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments