• Loss of power ends Mercedes driver's race early
• Team admits problem was spotted before the start
Lewis Hamilton's Australian Grand Prix was over long before it had even started, Mercedes admitted after the race. Hamilton, who started from pole, managed two laps before a loss of power forced him to quit.
Toto Wolff confirmed the team had noticed a problem before the lights went out and hoped it would clear. The Mercedes motorsport chief said: "He was very unlucky because being on pole he deserved to have a great race. It's a bit of a shame starting the season with a DNF but this is motor racing."
At the start Hamilton, right, was overtaken by Daniel Ricciardo and his own team-mate Nico Rosberg as he struggled to come to terms with the failure of one of his cylinders.
Mercedes told him to retire, but then advised him to continue before finally throwing in the towel. "We didn't understand whether the cylinder actually failed or whether it was a misfire or an electronic problem," Wolff said.
"At the beginning it seemed quite obvious that we needed to retire to protect the engine and then it was not very clear. Retiring the car was a safety measure. Lewis is in good spirits. With 18 more races to go there are going to be many more DNFs of other drivers and that's why he's OK."
Hamilton shrugged off the setback saying, "There's a massive positive. We won the race, so for the team it's a strong position to be in."
"I am generally quite relaxed. I did everything I could and did everything right. I couldn't have been any more focused. The car is fantastic and we've still got a long way to go."
Most pressingly, there is the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday week, a race Hamilton has never won and he is already 25 points adrift of his most serious rival. "I'm a few points down after the first race but this weekend I feel really happy with the job I did., with preparing myself, how I studied and how ready I was – and with qualifying lap I did considering I missed first practice. I feel like I'm giving it 110%.
This is a new era, this is what happens, you cannot expect us to all finish."
That It was a reaction you would not always have got from Hamilton in the past, certainly not in his most troubled season of 2011.Mercedes are still the team to beat and Hamilton, on the evidence of practice, has the beating of Rosberg. Reported by guardian.co.uk 34 minutes ago.
• Team admits problem was spotted before the start
Lewis Hamilton's Australian Grand Prix was over long before it had even started, Mercedes admitted after the race. Hamilton, who started from pole, managed two laps before a loss of power forced him to quit.
Toto Wolff confirmed the team had noticed a problem before the lights went out and hoped it would clear. The Mercedes motorsport chief said: "He was very unlucky because being on pole he deserved to have a great race. It's a bit of a shame starting the season with a DNF but this is motor racing."
At the start Hamilton, right, was overtaken by Daniel Ricciardo and his own team-mate Nico Rosberg as he struggled to come to terms with the failure of one of his cylinders.
Mercedes told him to retire, but then advised him to continue before finally throwing in the towel. "We didn't understand whether the cylinder actually failed or whether it was a misfire or an electronic problem," Wolff said.
"At the beginning it seemed quite obvious that we needed to retire to protect the engine and then it was not very clear. Retiring the car was a safety measure. Lewis is in good spirits. With 18 more races to go there are going to be many more DNFs of other drivers and that's why he's OK."
Hamilton shrugged off the setback saying, "There's a massive positive. We won the race, so for the team it's a strong position to be in."
"I am generally quite relaxed. I did everything I could and did everything right. I couldn't have been any more focused. The car is fantastic and we've still got a long way to go."
Most pressingly, there is the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday week, a race Hamilton has never won and he is already 25 points adrift of his most serious rival. "I'm a few points down after the first race but this weekend I feel really happy with the job I did., with preparing myself, how I studied and how ready I was – and with qualifying lap I did considering I missed first practice. I feel like I'm giving it 110%.
This is a new era, this is what happens, you cannot expect us to all finish."
That It was a reaction you would not always have got from Hamilton in the past, certainly not in his most troubled season of 2011.Mercedes are still the team to beat and Hamilton, on the evidence of practice, has the beating of Rosberg. Reported by guardian.co.uk 34 minutes ago.