Is a Ferrari win possible? Lewis Hamilton is counting on Leclerc’s support

At the most recent Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Lewis Hamilton got everything right and was rewarded with his first GP victory in red. The seven-time world champion can also hope for a strong result in today’s race at the Red Bull Ring, as he will start the race from third on the grid.

Ahead of the Briton will be pole-sitter George Russell and his team-mate Charles Leclerc. Like Hamilton, they too benefited from Max Verstappen’s late crash, which meant that most of the Q3 contenders were unable to complete their final, decisive attempt. Hamilton was doubly lucky, as he had ruined his first fast Q3 lap with two mistakes.

Would pole position have been possible otherwise? Hamilton said: “I don’t know if we could have held our own against the Mercedes lads. They’ve been quick all weekend – congratulations to George on pole.” And he emphasised: “On Friday we were still six tenths slower on the straights, and somehow we managed to close the gap.”

Ferrari duo united against Mercedes’ firepower

As for his chances of victory, the record-holding Grand Prix winner remains cautiously optimistic. He knows: “We weren’t exactly confident this weekend when it came to whether we could be in the running for the win. The Mercedes lads have been six tenths faster for most of the weekend so far. We managed to cut the gap to three tenths overnight.”

“But that’s still three tenths – or rather, just over two tenths. So it’s going to be very difficult to stand up to the Mercedes drivers. However, there’s a long run-up to the third corner, and I hope that together we can make a difference. It’s great to have Charles up there too, because that way we can work together and try to apply some pressure,” added the 41-year-old.

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