Lewis Hamilton admits he felt "a bit devastated" to be out of the fight for pole position after qualifying fifth for the British GP.
Lewis Hamilton admits he felt "a bit devastated" to be out of the fight for pole position after qualifying fifth for the British GP.
Although Hamilton acknowledges that Mercedes' upgrades were not drastic, he expected a bit more, especially in the wet.
"We brought some parts to the car, but it wasn't necessarily a big upgrade," the Briton told .
"However, it was definitely an improvement for us and it feels like we got a little bit closer. I don't think we would have been able to fight for the top three places or anything like that in the dry."
"But I think we had a chance in the rain because the speed in the uphill corners is less and there's less quik. In the dry, obviously you carry a lot more speed and you have more bite."
As for his prospects for the race, Hamilton doesn't expect things to be easy, particularly with no rain forecast, but he is determined to put on a good show for the local crowd.
"Our race pace was a little better than our single lap speed yesterday, as seems to be more the case," the seven-time world champion explained.
"I think this is also due to the lower speed in the corners. Starting fifth will be tough, but I will try to move forward. I'm a little bit devastated because obviously we have a great crowd here."
"I was pushing as hard as I could to fight for pole position or the front row, and I think we could have been in the top three. Honestly, I thought I would fight for at least second position."
"Finishing fifth makes tomorrow difficult, but I know I will have this fantastic crowd with me and I will try to push as hard as I can."