Lewis Hamilton W14 concerns were flatly dismissed, they’re now regretting

• Lewis Hamilton’s W14 concerns last year, were dismissed as wrong by Mercedes
• This was not the first time that Hamilton was raising concern with the underperformance of the W14
• He voiced his concern about the car throughout the season

Lewis Hamilton W14 concerns last year were dismissed as wrong by Mercedes, he has revealed.

This was not the first time that Hamilton was raising concern with the underperformance of the W14 which denied him an eighth F1 championship.

He voiced his concern about the car throughout the season, some of which were dismissed and he hasn’t forgotten.

Lewis Hamilton’s W14 Concerns

One of the biggest issues that he wanted Mercedes to address was their zero-pod strategy. Mercedes decided to stick with their zero-pod strategy on the W14 for Hamilton’s third winless season with the Silver Arrows.

He told BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast during the season’s first round that Mercedes “didn’t listen” when he expressed his concerns about the vehicle.

Lewis Hamilton. Photo/Sports Illustrated

In a video that was just published from the most recent season of Netflix’s Drive to Survive, the seven-time World Champion now recalls how Mercedes shut him down totally when he attempted to voice his opinion.

“I remember complaining to the team and being like, look, we have to make these changes, otherwise this is the trajectory we’re going to go on and this is where we’re going to end up’,” he stated.

He added: “Please, please do something about it. I remember they said, we know what we’re doing, you’re wrong’. And that was definitely an interesting moment. I was like, okay, I’ll step back, don’t want to step on anybody’s toes. Then when we got into the season, then we spoke again [they said] ‘oh, maybe you were right’.”

Did Mercedes Act on Lewis Hamilton’s Concerns?

Mercedes revamped the car before the Monaco Grand Prix, doing away with the zero-pods. The team also made other significant alterations in response to their failure to win a single Grand Prix in the previous season.

Although they and Hamilton P3 tied for second place in the Constructors’ Championship, the British driver’s drought now stands at 45 races after 2023’s winless campaign.

The Briton claimed he has nearly forgotten what it feels like to win, branding the W14 as the “evil sister” of its predecessor.

“My goal is to get back on top and win a championship again. But then we get in the car in 2023 and it’s the evil sister [of 2022]. I can’t really remember winning, it’s been like a minute to be honest,” he said.

He admits that Mercedes made a lot of wrong decisions and he is now hopeful that the team can redeem himself.

When is Lewis Hamilton Joining Ferrari?

The 39-year-old British driver will head to Ferrari in 2025. Nothing, according to the British driver, would make him happier than to leave the Formula One team where he competed for 11 years at the top of the standings.

Lewis Hamilton F1 season. Photo/GPFans

He describes it as the greatest honor Toto Wolff, who has spent over a decade with the squad, deserves. Between 2014 and 2020, Hamilton won seven F1 world championships with Mercedes.

The reasons why the team did not win its eighth championship in 2021 are still hotly debated, having begun with the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen of Red Bull, who has won the F1 constructors title three times in a row, took home the victory. Hamilton has a strong wish for Mercedes for the 2024 season because he will be leaving for Ferrari in the near future.

In a lengthy Instagram post, Hamilton said that his childhood dream was to race for Ferrari but his stint with Mercedes complicated his ambition.

For nine years, Mercedes provided him with quick and strong vehicles, and the team had excellent racing. It is true that he won his seven F1 titles with the Silver Arrows, but the car fell short of his expectations in 2022 and 2023.

He claims that moving to the Italian squad is the last step before realizing his long-held goal of becoming a Ferrari racer. He still owes Mercedes a great deal for having him over the past ten years, so this wasn’t a simple choice for him to make.

“Mercedes has been a huge part of my life since I was 13 years old, so this decision has been the hardest I’ve ever had to make,” he remarked.