After running third in the opening stages of the race at Albert Park on Sunday, Hamilton dropped back to fifth when he was overtaken on track by Sergio Perez and lost a place to Mercedes teammate George Russell in the pit stops.
Russell and Hamilton moved up to third and fourth when Red Bull’s Max Verstappen retired while running second, leaving the two Mercedes cars separated by just one second for the final podium position.
While following Russell, Hamilton radioed the pit wall to say: “You guys put me in a really difficult position.”
Hamilton ultimately finished the race in fourth place, but clarified afterwards that his radio message was related to his car overheating and not a criticism of the team.
Mercedes motorsport strategy director James Vowles has now explained the cooling difficulties Hamilton was facing that sparked the message amid higher-than-expected temperatures on race day in Melbourne.
“That was all about engine cooling and keeping the power unit cool during…
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