Hamilton: "From the tests we thought it would be a close battle"

Lewis Hamilton has admitted the Mercedes team were expecting a close battle at the start of the season with Ferrari expected to run them close but it has not panned out that way.

Hamilton and his teammate Valtteri Bottas have been first and second at the opening three races of the season and despite a lucky result in Bahrain have been relatively comfortable. Ferrari meanwhile have struggled for consistency, looking very quick in straight lines but have lost a lot of time in corners.

Ferrari’s best performance was from Charles Leclerc in Bahrain but he was only able to finish third after his engine short-circuited and Hamilton admitted the team were lucky in Sakhir.