Lewis Hamilton has not won in F1 since December 2021 at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and plans to end his winless streak before the end of the season; watch the Sao Paulo GP Sprint weekend live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday with qualifying at 6pm, Sunday’s race is at 5pm
Lewis Hamilton has “no plans” to end the 2023 Formula 1 season without a victory as he looks to end his winless streak.
Mercedes arrive at this weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix – live on Sky Sports F1 – having taken a one-two at Interlagos last year, with George Russell leading Hamilton to take his maiden win.
Hamilton has not won since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, nearly two years ago, but has been Max Verstappen’s closest challenger on the track at the last two events in Austin and Mexico City.
Last year was the first time Hamilton didn’t win in an F1 campaign during his 16 seasons in the sport, which began in 2007.
George Russell admits it has been a ‘really challenging’ year for him, but says Brazil holds a special place in his heart following his 2022 victory at the circuit.
“I anticipate the Red Bull’s going to blitz it because the car has been great, but if that’s not the case, then I’ll be ready to take the fight to them,” Hamilton said.
“If it can be anything like Austin and we can get the strategy better, then that would be incredible.
“I came away empty handed last year, so I don’t plan on that this year.”
Hamilton ‘not dazzled’ by Mercedes progress
While Hamilton is clearly relishing being back in contention for race victories, the seven-time world champion is refusing to get carried away by Mercedes’ strong recent form, given a similar end to 2022 failed to carry over to this season.
He said: “After the last couple of races, you get messages from people saying, ‘it’s looking good!’ I’m like, ‘yeah, it was looking good at the end of last year too, but we started 1.5 seconds at the start of the year.’
Lewis Hamilton says he is ‘sad’ to see chief technical officer Mike Elliot leave Mercedes and loved working with him within the team.
“So I’m not dazzled by where we are currently. I’m happy and proud. The only reason I’m on the podium is the great work that’s gone on in the background.
“But I’m thinking quite long-term at the moment, and then short-term just trying to solidify second in the constructors’ (championship) because that’s so important for everyone within the team.”
Mercedes were last winless in a season in 2011 and have three more chances to stand on the top step of the podium – in Brazil, Las Vegas or Abu Dhabi.
Hamilton showed strong race pace in Mexico City after the red flag for Kevin Magnussen’s crash – stretching a used set of medium tyres to the end of the race and setting the fastest lap on his final circuit.
Karun Chandhok takes us around the Interlagos circuit with Kevin Magnussen’s unexpected pole from the 2022 Brazilian GP.
The 38-year-old, who has won three times in Sao Paulo, says it will be “all hands on deck” to finish this year on a high.
“I don’t really know. I expect the Red Bull to be very fast, as always. It seems to work pretty much everywhere, except for Singapore,” said Hamilton.
“We expect the Ferraris to be quick. I hope that our car works well here, like it did for Austin, but you can just never predict – it could be bad, it could be good, so we’ll just try to prepare the best way we can.”
When to watch the Sao Paulo GP live only on Sky Sports F1
Friday November 3
- 2pm: Sao Paulo GP Practice (session starts at 2.30pm)
- 5.30pm: Sao Paulo GP Qualifying build-up (also on Sky Sports Main Event)
6pm: Sao Paulo GP Qualifying (also on Sky Sports Main Event) - 8pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
Look back at some of the most dramatic moments to have taken place at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Saturday November 4
- 1.30pm: Sprint Shootout build-up
- 2pm: Sao Paulo GP Sprint Shootout
- 5.30pm: Sprint build-up
- 6.30pm: SAO PAULO SPRINT
- 8pm: Ted’s Sprint Notebook
Sunday November 5
- 3.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Sao Paulo GP build-up
- 5pm: THE SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX
- 7pm: Chequered Flag: Sao Paulo GP reaction
- 8pm: Ted’s Notebook
F1 heads straight to Brazil for the final leg of the Americas triple header and the last Sprint weekend of the 2023 season. Watch every session from the Sao Paulo Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday, with Sunday’s race at 5pm. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
