Lewis Hamilton is hoping that Mercedes reduce the number of experiments they run on his W13 car during Grand Prix weekends after the team took a step forward in Canada. Hamilton was back on the podium for the first time since the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix as he fought his way to a third-place finish with a car he branded as "undriveable" during practice. His complaints came with the team running yet another experiment on his car in the hope of unlocking some extra performance. Hamilton has regularly volunteered as a guinea pig this season with Mercedes testing new parts on his car, experiments that have often left him playing catch up to teammate George Russell. "Maybe the second half of the season George can do the experiments," Hamilton joked as he spoke with select members of the media, including RacingNews365.com . But the seven-time World Champion is hoping that progress in Montreal means fewer experiments and more problem-free track time during practice sessions. "We're just trying to progress as a team. I think we'll be a little bit more cautious on doing too many experiments as it really does hinder you through the weekend, especially if you only have FP1 and FP2 in the dry, you don't get an FP3," he said. "I think there are lots of learnings from the weekend and improvements that we can make moving forwards. But you know, we had great pace. It's so nice to see, it's not always been the case with this car."
Hamilton dreaming of fight at the front
Hamilton had set his team the target of delivering him a car capable of fighting for a race wins in time for the British Grand Prix, which is now under two weeks away. During the final laps in Montreal, the 37-year-old for a moment thought his request had been granted as he prepared for a shootout with Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. But the W13 is still lacking the pace to truly challenge the front-runners - although Silverstone is expected to be a track more suited to the Mercedes' strength. "Moving onto Silverstone and such an important race for us and for me, I really just want to be in a battle with these guys," he continued. "At the end [of the race in Canada], when the Safety Car came in and we started again, I was hoping that I could be in the fight. "The dream was that I could keep in that battle with them and find a way but they were rapid! But we will get there."
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