Lewis Hamilton declares ‘game on’ as Mercedes eyes third straight win

Mercedes is looking to keep the momentum rolling at the Hungarian Grand Prix

Mercedes began the 2024 Formula 1 season on the back foot.

But things have certainly changed following that slow start.

Upgrades the team began rolling out at the Miami Grand Prix have paid dividends in recent weeks. The first sign of a breakthrough came in Montreal when George Russell captured pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix. While Russell could not hold on for a win he did turn his starting position into a podium, as his third-place finish marked the team’s first Grand Prix podium of the year.

It was Lewis Hamilton’s turn the following race weekend, as he stormed to a third-place finish in the Spanish Grand Prix.

Then came Austria. While Lando Norris and Max Verstappen were battling for the lead up front, Russell was running third, putting himself in position to capitalize when the two front runners touched wheels on Lap 64. While Norris and Verstappen limped back to pit lane with punctures, Russell took the lead and did not look back, securing Mercedes’ first win since the 2022 campaign.

While Russell’s win at Red Bull Ring was aided by a bit of luck, Hamilton’s victory the following week at Silverstone came largely on pace.

Now, Mercedes heads to Hungary the hottest team in the sport over the past four race weekends, and in Hamilton’s mind, they are looking for more.

“We definitely don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, that’s key in our approach,” said Hamilton to Sky Sports F1 on Thursday. “But, also, we’re like: ‘It’s game on!’

“We’re fighting, we’re chasing, and we’re going to try and win as many races as George mentioned or compete for as many wins as possible.”

Hamilton outlined how the team’s chase for “perfection” may be critical this weekend, as well as over the rest of the season.

“[It] may turn out this weekend that the Red Bull is still light years ahead, or the McLaren is, still this weekend, who knows? But what we have shown over the past few races is that with determination, with real focus and just persistently chasing for perfection and improvement you can make a difference,” said Hamilton.

“We are united as a team and we are going to try and make sure we finish this season on a high. If we can lift the team up in the ladder of constructors, if we can progress - we are not too far off the drivers up ahead of us - then that will be great.

“I’s really exciting for all of us.”