Hamilton says Mercedes 'slowly getting there' after Austrian GP podium

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Lewis Hamilton scored his third consecutive top-ten finish in Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix, a turnaround result after his Friday crash that shows that Mercedes is "slowly getting there".

Starting from P8, Hamilton battled among the midfield contenders and eventually broke clear of the group to settle among the top four, before he inherited third following the demise of Ferrari's Carlos Sainz.

While happy with his performance, Hamilton paid first and foremost a heartfelt tribute to his team whose crews were forced to work overtime after Friday's eventful qualifying session in which both Hamilton and teammate George Russell had crashed.

"I really feel great; I’m so happy with today, especially after such a difficult start to the weekend," said Hamilton who finished one place ahead of Russell.

"We were looking so good in qualifying and then I crashed, and it was about getting your head around that.

"The team worked so hard to build a new car from me. Naturally that affects everything, it affects our budget, that affects so many people who have to build new parts so that’s never a good feeling so to get up there and get some good points for the team is hopefully a small token of my appreciation.

"I’m really happy to get third and fourth."

Read also: 'Mind blowing' that fans cheered qualifying crash - Hamilton

Mercedes' level of performance relative to Ferrari and Red Bull has improved of late, even if the latter were out of reach in Austria.

Hamilton believes the Brackely squad will continue to inch closer to its rivals as long as it keeps pushing.

"I don’t know why they were so quick here," he commented. "We’ll just keep pushing. We’re not too bad, some of our laps were comparable so we’re slowly getting there.

"We just need to keep chipping away."

So far, Hamilton remains the only driver to have finished every race in 2022. The 103-time Grand Prix winner currently sits third in the Drivers' standings with 94 points, 22 points behind Russell in P5.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.