Hamilton reveals that 'Valtteri had a lot more pace in the car' in Australia

Lewis Hamilton has revealed that he let Bottas get ahead of him during the Australian Grand Prix as he did not have the tyre grip to stay with him. With Bottas winning the race and also picking up an extra point for having the quickest lap, it will be a very competitive season between the two Mercedes drivers.

Hamilton looked like the favourite to win the Australian Grand Prix after setting the fastest time in qualifying to start on pole. However, it was his teammate, Bottas who was dominant.

“Valtteri had a lot more pace in the car,” Hamilton explained to RaceFans. “But here you need a 1.8-second delta to overtake the car ahead. So as soon as we got through turn one it was really about managing.

The 2019 season is set to be nail-bitingly close both at the top of the grid and also in the midfield. It will be interesting to see which Mercedes driver finishes the season ahead.