Lewis Hamilton has said he believes McLaren Mercedes could make a real breakthrough with their MP4-24 car over coming races.
World champion says McLaren "could hit a breakthrough at any stage"
Lewis Hamilton has said he believes McLaren Mercedes could make a real breakthrough with their MP4-24 car over coming races.
The world champion was speaking after in the wake of his ninth-place finish in last weekend's Spanish Grand Prix - Hamilton struggling with grip at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya.
Although conceding that, in its current guise, the MP4-24 is far from a title-winning car, Hamilton stressed that the team were working hard to make improvements.
He also said he thought the car was not fundamentally flawed, meaning that the team could yet unlock its potential.
"The whole team is working as hard as it can to improve the car and we have some more upgrades coming for Monaco next week," Hamilton told his official website.
"I definitely think we can turn the corner with this car - I don't think the whole car is wrong, I think perhaps a small issue is triggering a bigger problem somewhere else. And that's encouraging because it means we could hit a breakthrough at any stage.
"We've definitely taken some big steps forward and we've learnt from some of our mistakes too - we're all optimistic for the next few races."
Step forward
While stressing that McLaren were not expecting a great deal from their car in Spain, Hamilton expressed his hope that the team could take a step forward once again in Monaco next week.
"I hope our new modifications give us a huge chunk of downforce. I know the guys will keep pushing, I'm pushing like crazy, we're all pushing like crazy: when we start winning again, we'll deserve it more than anything because we'll have been through so much to get back there," he added.
"There is a great feeling of solidarity and optimism in the team at the moment, we'll never give up."
