Lewis Hamilton says recent progress by Mercedes has reassured him that he will be able to win a race this year.
The seven-time champion is the only driver in history to have won a grand prix every year of his F1 career.
Hamilton said consecutive podium finishes have “encouraged us that we are moving in the right direction”.
He added: “With a bit more hard work, hopefully we can get closer to having a chance of winning. I truly believe we can get a race win this year.”
Hamilton said that at the beginning of the season the car was performing so poorly he was concerned Mercedes would never return to competitiveness in 2022.
“There was a long way back,” he said. “Earlier this year I definitely wasn’t sure we would ever get a win in this car, but that was not the way we like to think.
“It felt there’s a long way to catch everyone up knowing the progress everyone makes.”
But two separate upgrades – one at the Spanish Grand Prix in May and another at the British Grand Prix last weekend – have helped Mercedes understand their car, and the team now believe they can make further progress towards the front over forthcoming races.
Hamilton’s remarks are a major turnaround from just two races ago, when after Friday practice in Canada he described the Mercedes as “a disaster” and “the worst I have felt any car here”.
“[It’s] definitely hugely encouraging,” Hamilton said. “For a long time, we would make changes and not see it do what it says it was going to do, or improve the car.
“It was a good step in Barcelona, but then we had several difficult races following it. Then we had the last two races.”
He now believes “there really is potential in the car”.
But after challenging the Ferraris for victory at Silverstone on Sunday, Hamilton does not expect to be as competitive at this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix.
“At Silverstone there was definitely potential to win the race,” he said.
“With our current performance, we are not at the same level as the teams ahead of us – we needed everything to align.
“We have always struggled in Austria so it is going to be hard to win here knowing the combination of corners. But not impossible.
“The weather is up and down. I am hopeful we will be pleasantly surprised tomorrow, but I might be wrong. But I am staying hopeful.”
Zhou accident a ‘reminder’ of F1 danger
Hamilton said that Zhou Guanyu’s huge accident at the start of the British Grand Prix was a “reminder to those watching that this is a dangerous sport”.
The Chinese driver’s Alfa Romeo vaulted a barrier after a multi-car pile-up and he ended up stuck in the car because it came to rest on its side between the metal barrier and catch fencing protecting the crowd.
Hamilton said: “We take risks out there, real risks, at crazy speeds. Sometimes people take it for granted. We are not just cruising around, we are exposed in a couple of areas and we have to not take that for granted.”
He said Zhou’s accident “highlights [that] we have to continue to work towards improving.
“The car getting stuck behind that barrier and a driver getting stuck in the car is something we need to make sure doesn’t happen again, but sometimes these experiences are what open our eyes to how much we can improve and we will continue to do that.”
Zhou, who has been cleared to race in Austria by F1 doctors, spoke about the crash for the first time on Thursday.
“I didn’t realise I was between the barriers,” he said. “I was thinking I was next to the barriers. But I was actually between the barrier and the fence, which I don’t know how I survived. But looking back, obviously, the halo [head-protection device] saved me.”
Zhou said he realised the positioning of his car only when he saw pictures of the accident afterwards.
He said his main concern while the accident was unfolding was to ensure his hand did not get injured, and that when the car came to a rest he “felt some [fluid] leaking”.
“I wasn’t sure if it was from my body or is this from the car,” he said, “so I just tried to switch off the engine because the engine was still on by then. I knew if the fire starts, it will be difficult to get out. So I switched my engine off. And everything was fine.”
He added: “Happy to have back-to-back races because if you had a summer break after that it would be terrible, because you would be thinking about it, repeating the crash in your mind again and again.
“Even though you try and avoid it, you would somehow find it somewhere. Good to be back as soon as I could.”
