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Lewis Hamilton suggested after the Saudi Arabian GP that Mercedes team-mate George Russell had benefitted from good fortune after they chose alternative car setups; watch the Australian GP live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend, with Sunday’s race live at 6am

George Russell has rejected Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton’s claims that his superior performance at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was based on luck.

Russell comfortably outqualified Hamilton in Jeddah before finishing the race where he started it in fourth, a place ahead of Hamilton who recovered from seventh on the grid.

With the Mercedes pair having chosen alternative setups going into the weekend, Hamilton said after the race that “more often than not” Russell’s would have been the “wrong one”, and that consequently he “could only match his pace rather than be quicker”.

“I don’t think there’s any luck in it at all,” Russell said on Thursday ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix, when asked to address Hamilton’s comments.

“I think it’s down to the preparation you put in before the event.

“The changes we made overnight, I knew that was going to be the right direction with the work we did with the team. And I believed it was going to be better than the setup that Lewis opted for.

“I think everybody’s got different preferences, I was happy with the direction I took and the work I’m doing with the engineers.”

Russell impressively outperformed Hamilton in his debut campaign with Mercedes last year, finishing 35 points ahead of the seven-time world champion in the drivers’ standings, and also claiming the team’s only win of the season.

Hamilton, along with Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, repeatedly suggested throughout 2022 that his willingness to experiment with alternate setups on their troublesome W13 car was the reason he lost ground to Russell.

Hamilton: Russell did a great job

Speaking shortly after Russell in Melbourne on Thursday, Hamilton sought to clarify the comments he had made in Jeddah.

“I think people probably, from my choice of words at the weekend… I want to reiterate how great a job George did on the weekend,” the seven-time world champion said.

“I think the thing I was commenting on is that there’s one specific thing that you can change in the suspension that you have to do over Friday night.

“And when you make that change, once you start P3 (final practice), you can’t change it for the rest of the weekend, so when you make that change, you’re basically rolling the dice – sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.

“I’ve done it in the past, sometimes it hasn’t worked, sometimes it has, and it worked great for George and he did a great job.

“And the thing that I was lacking in the race was a lot of front end, which that setup gives you, so, in hindsight, that would’ve been great.”

“We took lots of learnings from it – I think race pace was quite decent, particularly in the second stint.

“And for us to move forward and get fourth and fifth place was great points for the team and a great result considering where we are in terms of performance deficit.”

Hamilton goes into Sunday’s race in Melbourne two points ahead of Russell in the 2023 drivers’ standings, with the team focused on attempting to close their deficit to Red Bull, who are seeking a third successive one-two to start the season.

Watch the Australian Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend, with Sunday’s race live at 6am. Get Sky Sports

Lewis Hamilton was left frustrated as Mercedes remained off the pace of Red Bull at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix; Sergio Perez led a one-two from Max Verstappen as Hamilton finished fifth behind team-mate George Russell

Lewis Hamilton says Red Bull’s 2023 advantage over the rest of the Formula 1 field is greater than anything Mercedes managed during their streak of eight successive constructors’ championships.

Hamilton finished fifth in Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as Mercedes remained well off the pace of Red Bull, who secured a second one-two in as many races this season.

Sergio Perez won from pole position in Jeddah, but reigning world champion Max Verstappen’s effortless advance through the field from 15th on the grid – following a technical failure in Qualifying – provided further evidence of Red Bull’s stunning pace.

“I have definitely never seen a car so fast,” said Hamilton, who claimed six of his seven world championships during Mercedes streak of constructors’ titles between 2014 and 2021.

“When we were fast, we were not that fast. It is the fastest car I have seen, especially compared to the rest.

“I don’t know how, but he [Verstappen] came past me with some serious speed and I didn’t even bother to block him because there was a massive speed difference.

“Everyone wants to see a close battle, but it is the way it is. It is not my problem, it is not my fault.”

Hamilton cut a despondent figure after qualifying more than three tenths – and four places – behind his team-mate George Russell, but was able to gain two places in the race to finish directly behind the other Mercedes and in front of both Ferraris.

While Hamilton said there were “positives” to take from his Sunday, the 38-year-old remained frustrated by his team’s deficit to Red Bull and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso, who took the final spot on the podium for a second successive race.

“(We are) still a long, long way off Red Bull,” Hamilton said. “(It’s) definitely strange to see that Ferrari are behind us and it’s positive for us.

“It’s a different surface here and we don’t really understand why on this surface our car works one way and different on another.

“It will be up and down through the first three races. Hopefully we can get some upgrades ASAP and try to close that gap to the Astons.”

Hamilton, who finished behind Russell last season in his younger team-mate’s first year with Mercedes, suggested his deficit in Saudi Arabia was caused by a “50-50” set up choice that went against him.

“The strategy didn’t really work out for me, the set up was a little bit off – if I had the set up George had, I would have been in a better position,” Hamilton said.

“There was a 50-50 choice, I chose one way and he chose the other, and more often than not, the way he went was the wrong one but it just happened to work.

“I could only match his pace rather than be quicker this weekend, but I’ll work hard to make sure we’re in a better position next time.”

F1’s biggest-ever season continues as Saudi Arabia hosts the second round of 2023; watch every session from Jeddah’s stunning street circuit live on Sky Sports F1, starting with Practice One at 1pm on Friday

Formula 1 returns to the fastest street circuit on the calendar this week for the Saudi Arabian GP, with the thrilling layout bound to ensure drama that will take your breath away.

After reigning world champion Max Verstappen made a strong start to his title defence in Bahrain, the rest of the field are looking to hit back in Jeddah.

Ferrari are confident set-up changes will unlock more performance at a circuit that should suit them, while all eyes will be on Aston Martin and Fernando Alonso to see if their dramatic ascent to the front of the grid can be maintained.

Verstappen is chasing a second successive win in Saudi Arabia, having come out on top in a thrilling battle for victory with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc last year, which displayed the thrilling potential for wheel-to-wheel racing at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.

Mercedes will also be looking to bounce back from a disappointing opening race, with all eyes on Lewis Hamilton following his apparent criticism of the team following their Bahrain struggles.

There is also plenty of intrigue surrounding the midfield battle, with the change of track characteristics potentially shaking up the order from Bahrain.

Sky Sports F1’s live Saudi Arabian GP schedule

Thursday
2:30pm: Drivers’ Press Conference

Friday
10.50pm: F2 Practice
1pm: Saudi Arabian GP Practice One (session starts 1.30pm)
2:55pm: F2 Qualifying
4:45pm: Saudi Arabian GP Practice Two (session starts 5pm)
6:15pm: The F1 Show: Saudi Arabia

Saturday
1.15pm: Saudi Arabian GP Practice Three (session starts 1:30pm)
3:05pm: F2 Sprint Race
4pm: Saudi Arabian GP Qualifying build-up
5pm: SAUDI ARABIAN GP QUALIFYING

Sunday
1:35pm: F2 Feature Race
3.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday Saudi Arabian GP build-up
5pm: THE SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX
7pm: Chequered flag: Saudi Arabian GP Reaction

New for 2023: Ride onboard with any driver

Sky Sports F1 viewers can experience live races from inside the car of their favourite driver thanks to a stunning new innovation for the 2023 season.

Sky customers with a Sky Sports F1 subscription just need to download the Sky Sports App and log in to ride with Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc or any driver of their choice.

In addition to the 20 driver onboard streams, viewers will also be able to experience the Sky Sports ‘Battle Channel’, a split-screen offering focusing on a battle between up to three cars.

If you prefer to jump onboard through your TV screen, the service will also be available through Sky Q and Sky Glass.

This is in addition to the Race Control streams that have been available in previous seasons, including multi-screen, timing screen, driver tracker and onboard mix.

Watch the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend with Sunday’s race live at 5pm. Get Sky Sports

Mercedes made a disappointing start to their 2023 campaign as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were left well off the pace of Red Bull in Bahrain; Speculation has followed over Hamilton’s future with the team; watch the Saudi Arabian GP on Sky Sports F1 next weekend

Mercedes have insisted they will not “panic or look for scapegoats” after a disappointing start to the 2023 Formula 1 season in Bahrain last weekend.

Following a torrid 2022 campaign which saw their eight-year streak of constructors’ titles ended by Red Bull, Mercedes had been bullish during the winter over a return to contention this year, but that optimism faded as they were outperformed by not only the dominant reigning champions but also Ferrari and Aston Martin.

Recriminations followed with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton publicly questioning the team’s decision to ignore his advice over the design of their 2023 car, and team principal Toto Wolff describing the Bahrain GP as “one of the worst days in racing”.

With speculation raging about Hamilton’s future with the team, along with other key members of staff, the team released a letter addressed to their fans on Saturday morning in an apparent attempt to calm the situation.

The letter said: “Bahrain hurt. It hurt each one of us, who head into every season determined to fight for world championships. It hurt the team as a whole, after pouring so much hard work into a car that hasn’t met our expectations.

“The situation we face right now isn’t the one that any of us wanted – but it’s the one we have. That’s the reality of it. And the simple questions are: what can we do about it, and what will we do about it?

“We won’t panic or make knee-jerk reactions. In a spotlight as fierce as F1, people are quick to point fingers, or look for scapegoats. But you know us better than that. Inside the team, we talk about having the courage to fail, the character to be accountable and the strength to see failure as an opportunity.

“We have been open and searingly honest about where we find ourselves. And we are working urgently and calmly to build our recovery plan, focusing on what needs to happen short term, medium term, and long term to win. We already have developments in the pipeline for the next races – and there will be more to come. But this won’t be the work of a moment; there are no silver bullets in F1.”

Hamilton, who finished fifth in Bahrain ahead of team-mate George Russell in seventh, has repeatedly expressed a desire to remain with Mercedes in F1 beyond the end of the season, when his current contract expires.

Both the 38-year-old and Wolff had previously suggested agreeing an extension would be a formality, but the team’s apparent failure to provide him with a championship-contending car for a second straight season has led to speculation over whether he could choose to retire or look for a move elsewhere.

There is also great interest in how Mercedes will proceed with the development of their W14 car after Wolff suggested in Bahrain that the team had accepted their current concept will not work.

The statement continued: “We will keep our heads held high – and take this journey step by step, together. We are Mercedes. We know the standards we aspire to, and nobody is flinching when we look at the mountain we must climb. It won’t be easy – but where’s the value in something easy?

“These are the times when character is forged; the times when a team becomes greater than the sum of its parts, tackling difficult problems and conquering them. We’re together through thick and thin – from Toto, Lewis and George, to every single woman and man in the factories in Brackley and Brixworth. And we love that challenge.”

Hamilton and Mercedes will be back in action next weekend at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, with every session live on Sky Sports F1, starting with first practice on Friday at 1:30pm.