The optimism according to Lewis Hamilton…

Lewis Hamilton believes that the new McLaren MP4-23 is in good shape for the start of the season. However, he is well aware that his team has much, much more work to do in preparation for their anticipated battle with Ferrari.

McLaren seemed to have a slight edge over Ferrari in lap times during the last pre-season event in Barcelona, Spain.

Hamilton is optimistic thanks in particular to the way the British team managed its winter testing and especially in the last two weeks.

« The winter tests went very well, » he stated in an interview.

« We regularly had reliability and the car felt good. We completed great test days covering a very large number of kilometers. The goal was to familiarize ourselves as much as possible with the car. »

Speaking about the final test, he stated: « It has been a good week, in addition to the development program planned for these tests, we worked with the whole team to get back into the swing of a race with, for example, activities such as real-time pit stops. »

« As I just said, I have a good feeling about the single-seater, but as always, we still have work to do. A Formula 1 car is constantly evolving and when we think back to what we have done since the MP4-23 came to life in January, it is very encouraging, » continued Hamilton.

« The work doesn’t stop just because the trials have proven successful. »

The potential progress made by the Briton over the winter was shared with his teammate Heikki Kovalainen, who joined the team in December.

« We improved the car, I improved myself and I got to know the best team, » the Finn said.

« Everything is very positive around me, there have been no negative moments. »

« Of course, some days are more difficult than others, but we are making progress all the time. Overall, it was, therefore, a very good winter, and we have the necessary pace to have a good year, » concluded Kovalainen.