Mercedes boss reveals the “biggest weakness” of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell’s F1 challengers 

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff recently claimed that the W14's unpredictability has been a bigger issue for Lewis Hamilton and George Russell this season than the car's downforce problems.

Although the Silver Arrows were hopeful that the W14 would perform much better than their 2022 challenger, the W13, some issues have persisted, including a lack of downforce, which makes the cars slower during corners.

After Lewis Hamilton lost out to Lando Norris during the British GP, Wolff talked about the W14's issues with consistency. He said:

"The biggest weakness in the [W14] car is not the lack of downforce. It's that the car is unpredictable."

Wolff added that the car's balance has been another issue that their drivers are facing this season, and hence, there is a difference in their performance during the qualifying sessions. The Austrian executive added:

"The drivers never have the confidence of really pushing it in qualifying. What we need to work on is just giving them a better car balance."

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Lewis Hamilton admits that Mercedes is not 'fast enough' to battle at the top

Lewis Hamilton secured his first pole position since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Hungary. However, he lost his lead to Max Verstappen at the start of the race. The seven-time world champion finished P4, behind both Red Bulls and Lando Norris' McLaren.

After the race, Hamilton stated that the Silver Arrows are not fast enough to compete at the front of the grid with Red Bull. He said (via Crash.net):

"It’s obvious we’re not the quickest, we don’t have the quickest car."

"The reality is we are not fast enough. They already told me in strategy this morning I would be at least five-tenths slower than the Red Bull so the fight is not with Max."

Mercedes' performances have improved since the Monaco GP this season, where the design of their side pod was altered, matching the design philosophy of other teams. Hamilton secured consecutive podium finishes after the changes at the Spanish (P2) and Canadian Grand Prix (P3).