LEWIS HAMILTON has been taunted by Fernando Alonso, who has accused the Brit of having “a short memory”.
Hamilton claimed that Max Verstappen’s Red Bull was “the fastest car I’ve seen” as he was passed by the Dutchman in the Saudi Arabian GP.
The seven-time world champion said Red Bull’s advantage was greater than anything Mercedes had during their eight consecutive constructors’ titles between 2014 and 2021.
But Alonso has rubbished his claim in an interview with French publication L’Equipe ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.
Alonso said: “I don’t agree at all. Last week [in Saudi Arabia] I finished 20 seconds behind Checo [Perez] and Max.
“He and [Nico] Rosberg were a minute ahead in 2014 and 2015… He has a short memory, he’s getting old!”
Alonso, who famously fell out with Hamilton when they were team-mates at McLaren in 2007, also said that he was now aware of the 38-year-old’s “weaknesses” now he no longer has a superior car.
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He added: “With a normal car, you can see that he has weaknesses.
“Before, he drove alone or sometimes with his team-mate. But look, he is the record holder for poles and George Russell has just [beaten] him a 2-0 in qualifying this season. It just goes to show how much the car is still a key factor.”
Meanwhile, Merc boss Toto Wolff says Hamilton and Russell cannot expect to receive major upgrades until the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in May.
Wolff has already committed to redesigning this year’s car after a slow start to the season.
The Austrian has promised “visible changes” to the car but they will not be ready for the GPs in Baku and Miami.
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He said: “We’re doing good steps, good developments, but you’ve got to run them, confirm them, produce them.
“So, I think we’re not looking for an introduction before Imola. We want to do it right also.”
Hamilton was not happy with his car’s performance in practice in Melbourne for this weekend’s race.
He said: “This morning was good, this afternoon wasn’t so good. The car is similar [to Bahrain and Saudi Arabia]. It felt a bit better this morning.
“We made some changes, didn’t work, so we will revise them tonight. Then it rained so it wasn’t the greatest of sessions.”
When quizzed for his expectations this weekend, he added: “We won’t be competing with the Red Bulls. I think we have the pace to be around fifth, same as the last race.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
