Hamilton yet to reach his full potential: Brawn

Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn feels that Hamilton has a lot more to offer and that he was still adapting to the new team.

“When a driver of Lewis’s calibre joins a team, there is massive expectation but every driver takes a little time to settle in, to understand the nuances,” Brawn said.

Although he dropped back at the British Grand Prix due to tyre problems, he has managed to score the highest points in his last three races. His win at Hungarian GP has brought him within a sniffing distance behind championship leader Sebastian Vettel.

Hamilton has had minor hiccups in adjusting to his new car, but the thoughts of winning the championship has not eluded his mind. “It’s too early [to talk about it] at the moment. [But] of course it’s definitely in the back of my mind.

Hamilton is optimistic about the challenges that lay ahead, and the only way forward is constant improvement.

“[Hamilton] is starting to pick up momentum and move in the right direction,” Brawn said. “So we honestly don’t know where the limit is, because we are on a journey with Lewis and we don’t know where the limits are.”

Brawn said: “It’s our big challenge to maintain that [momentum]. Our hit rate [on developments] has been pretty good this season – things that we have brought to the track have generally worked and we’ve got some things coming up in the next few races that could give us the impetus and momentum to take us through the year.”