Lewis Hamilton He heads to the Russian Grand Prix preparing for a “struggle” despite his appreciation that his condition could have been much worse after he endured a nerve-wracking rehab session at the Sochi Autodrome.

Hamilton was on the verge of failing to make it to the top 10 penalties list after suffering an accident Sebastian Vettel They took out the red flags with just over two minutes remaining, leaving the six-time Formula 1 champion without time on the board.

Once the session resumed, Hamilton then reached the start and finish line to start the flying lap by 1.25 seconds, eventually reaching the third quarter and finishing 96th in his Formula 1 career.

“It was one of the hardest rehearsal sessions I can remember, as everything was so fast, there was a panic and everything was going on,” Hamilton said.

“ Obviously then the timing once you’re there, and then just having to calm myself and find my center, calm my heart and want to get done in the third quarter.

“I’m very grateful to everyone just because they kept their cool, and it could have been a lot worse. I could be out of the top ten, so I’m really grateful I’m going to compete.”

Hamilton is compromised by the fact that he began using the soft tire compared to the middle runners behind him at Red Bull’s. Max Verstappen And his teammate Valtteri BottasWhile he’s ready to go out in the long run to the first major corner.

Mercedes Motorsports Coach Toto Wolf has already stated that Hamilton faces tough demand To secure a career victory equivalent to a record 91.

“I generally expect one of these two [Verstappen or Bottas] To come by air at some point. “

“I’m clearly in the worst tire to start the race. Overall, it’s a good starting tire but has the most degradation, 10 times more than any other tire, so that would be a struggle.

“I don’t know if that will put me in two stops, which is unlikely because the pit pass is so slow, so I will have to take care of those tires as much as I can.

“These guys, if they succeed, they’ll quit, so I’ll try to see if there’s a different kind of race I can do to keep me in place.”

before you go…

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