I won't quit the 'family'

HAMILTON PLANS TO MAKE IT WORK WITH MERC

- DANIEL MOXON

FORMULA ONE: SAUDI GP

LEWIS HAMILTON has dismissed speculation he could quit Mercedes despite appearing to throw in the towel for the championship after just one race.

Hamilton insisted he retains “100 per cent belief” in the team even though he acknowledged they are miles off the pace set by Red Bull at the beginning of the season.

Max Verstappen barely broke a sweat as he and his Red Bull team dominated in Bahrain.

And speaking ahead of this weekend’s race in Saudi Arabia, Hamilton conceded it is not just Verstappen and teammate Sergio Perez they have to overhaul.

He said: “We need the Red Bulls, Ferraris and maybe now the Aston Martins not to finish the race for us to be winning, at the moment.