Lewis Hamilton says that Mercedes has “given up” more points than Ferrari so far during this Formula 1 season.
Sebastian Vettel currently leads the drivers’ championship by 14 points over Hamilton, but Valtteri Bottas has helped Mercedes establish a 39-point constructors’ lead.
However, with Ferrari clearly superior at the Hungaroring, Hamilton is hoping that Mercedes can wrest back control of the title race when the summer break ends at Spa on August 25-27.
“We’ve given up a lot of points to this point; Ferrari have given up a lot less as a team,” said Hamilton.
“We just hope that we don’t give up any more points.
“I don’t know why we were off the pace compared to the Ferraris (in Hungary); whether or not that will continue in the next race, I’ve got no idea.
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“I don’t know whether they’ve got an upgrade, I’m not aware of that.
“Hopefully we’ll go to circuits like Spa and it will be a bit more like Silverstone (where Mercedes was dominant).”
Hamilton said that he felt the summer break was well-timed given the stressful nature of the first part of the campaign, where Mercedes has faced its toughest opposition yet since new engine regulations were introduced in 2014.
“It’s definitely been very tough, physically, mentally and emotionally for everyone in the team,” he added.
“I can only really speak on my behalf, and it’s definitely been a difficult season up to now.
“The break will be very good for everyone to spend some time with family and whatever they do – recharge and come back fresh.
“I truly believe that we have the capability of winning this championship, but it’s going to take absolutely 100 percent of everyone’s effort to pull it off.
“I can just encourage my team to come back strong and I’ll try to come back even stronger.”
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