Hamilton hints at revival after 'seeing the light'

Lewis Hamilton has offered an optimistic outlook on his future as he declared Mercedes has found its “North Star” as it looks to end its run of lacklustre results.

A fifth place at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix remains Mercedes' best finish of the campaign so far.

The Brackley-based squad has been unable to consistently challenge at the front of the field since the introduction of new technical regulations in 2022, taking one grand prix across the last two years.

Last time out in Miami, Mercedes introduced upgrades to the W15 with more fresh parts set to make their debut in Imola this weekend.

Hamilton hailed the effort from the Mercedes crew as he looks for gains with the fresh updates on the car.

“From my side, it’s not been great, good at all,” Hamilton told media including RacingNews365. “But the last race was positive and there’s a long, long way to go.

“So I’m just really excited for the developments that are coming. We’ve had a step in the last race and we’ve got a step this weekend and there’s more in the pipeline.

“I feel like we’ve found more of our North Star and what we need to do and change. It just takes time.

“But the energy in the team is amazing. They’re so resilient in this team. We just continue to push, even though we’ve been knocked down quite a few times.

“So we’re just going to continue to keep our heads down and stay focused and try and do the best job we can each weekend.”

No new approach

The ongoing F1 season marks Hamilton's final with Mercedes, as he opted to bring an end to his highly successful partnership with the German manufacturer.

Hamilton will join Ferrari in 2025 alongside Charles Leclerc as he pursues a fresh challenge.

With the current weekend being the first time he has raced in Ferrari's home of Italy since the announcement, the 39-year-old asserted he is not altering his approach.

“I arrived at the track just exactly the same as any other weekend. I’m just excited to get on track,” he said.

“There will be a big crowd here There always is. And they come out in full force, the Tifosi.

“So I'm looking forward to seeing them but I've not had a huge amount of time to engage with them.”