Hamilton's state of mind: 'Well, it's not great'

A quarter of the season is over, and Mercedes are anywhere but where they want to be. The team of Lewis Hamilton and George Russel are not fighting for podiums, let alone wins. These days, Mercedes are happy with a decent haul of points. So, in the run-up to the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola, Hamilton and Russell were asked what their state of mind currently is at the moment?

Hamilton didn't have to think long about that: "Yeah, from my side it's not been great, but the last race was positive, and there's a long, long way to go. I'm just really excited about the developments that are coming. We've had a step in the last race, we've got a step this weekend, and there's more in the pipeline. I feel like we've kind of found more of our North Star and what we need to do and change, it just takes time. "

George Russell is also very appreciative of the amount of work Mercedes is currently doing behind the scenes. The Briton echoes the words of his experienced teammate: "It's been pretty impressive to see how the team have all come together, putting in so many hours back at the factory to try and bring these developments onto the car quicker, working so hard to try and make the car faster," said Russell.

Although it may not seem so to the outside world, even according to the one-time Grand Prix winner, Mercedes are going to make steps forward soon. "I think it's very clear the direction we need to head, and that gives people motivation and a clear platform where we need to develop upon. Time will tell in the coming races, but the morale or the motivation has not dipped whatsoever, and everybody's so motivated to get Mercedes back to the top."