Mercedes horror sprint shoot out at Austria comes to an end as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell start P18 and P15 respectively

Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell had a horrendous Sprint Shootout session at the 2023 F1 Austrian GP.

The former was knocked out of SQ1, while the latter had a hydraulic failure in SQ2. Even though the Sprint Shootout and Race does not affect the main race, it is safe to say the duo and their team will not be feeling too good about it.

Right after getting knocked out of the SQ1 session, Lewis Hamilton spoke to F1 presenter Lawrence Barretto. Hamilton outlined how he did not have the best track position to clock in a strong lap.

While he sounded downbeat, he stated that he just wants to focus on the rest of the day and have some fun racing from behind.

"Just, timing was not great. Sprint races are mad anyway, so today we're just going to have some fun from the back. It is what it is. I don't feel any other way about it, I wish I was still out there, but yeah...not today," Lewis Hamilton said.

"No, there is nothing really to say. Just focus on the job today, and.... Could have easily been further up there but yeah, just have some fun at the back."

Though Hamilton's teammate, George Russell, made it into SQ2, his car had a major hydraulic failure. Mercedes mechanics were trying their level best to solve the problem to give Russell at least one chance to drive a fast lap, but they were unable to do so.

Hamilton will start the Sprint Race from 18th place, while Russell will start from 15th.

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Lewis Hamilton urges FIA to curb Red Bull's 2024 car development

Lewis Hamilton feels the FIA should make a rule for teams not to start development on next year's car before a certain date. The seven-time world champion made the statement while speaking about Red Bull and how far ahead they are in the development race.

In conversation with Sky Sports, Hamilton said:

"I think ultimately it's likely that - bit by bit - by the end of the year, we will probably catch Red Bull, but that's only because they're probably already focusing on next year's car because they're so far ahead.

"They don't have to make any changes to this year's car any more as they're so far ahead. He's cruising at 100 points ahead of us."

The Mercedes driver added:

"I think the FIA should probably put a time when everyone is allowed to start developing on the next year's car. So August 1, that's when everybody can start so then no one can get an advantage on the next year, cause that sucks."

Multiple reports have suggested that Red Bull have already started developing their 2024 F1 car, simply because their 2023 RB19 has been incredibly fast.