Having salvaged an unexpected podium finish from the opening race of the season, Lewis Hamilton could be satisfied with his early damage limitation as Mercedes began 2022 with an unexpectedly uncompetitive car.
However his form took a nosedive at round two, where he crossed the line in a lowly 10th place. “Is there even a point for that position?” he asked his race engineer as he awaited confirmation of his result.
There was, but only one, which was a rare low for a driver as accustomed to success as he is. It’s been a long time since he opened his championship with two results as lowly as this.
His haul of 16 points from the first two races is his lowest since the current scoring system was introduced. Third and 10th is also his worst pair of results at the start of the year since 2009, his first world championship defence, when he was disqualified in the season opener and took seventh next time out. He finished third on the road at Melbourne in 2009, so without that penalty…