Hamilton acknowledged the upgrades as small steps forward but emphasized their limited effect on the team’s overall form. “Not a big difference,” Hamilton remarked, indicating the upgrades’ marginal impact.

“They are small steps but very, very small.”

Despite this, Hamilton expressed satisfaction with his race pace at the Imola Circuit, noting competitiveness in the second stint compared to frontrunners. However, he conceded the team still lacked two or three-tenths of performance.

“My pace in the second stint stint was comparable to the guys towards the front,” he said.

“But we’re still I think we’re still lacking two or three-tenths.”

Turn 12 mistake

Hamilton’s race was not without challenges, as he encountered a mishap at Turn 12, resulting in a trip through the gravel and a loss of approximately five seconds. Although the incident cost him valuable time, Hamilton maintained his sixth-place position, benefiting from a pit stop for teammate George Russell.

“I think [I lost] about probably about five seconds with that off,” Hamilton stated.

“Then that meant that I came out behind Fernando and I lost another bunch of seconds there so I think probably all in all probably eight seconds.

“So not ideal, but it didn’t lose any positions.”

In summary, while Hamilton secured a top-six result, Mercedes’ upgrades did little to alleviate the team’s performance struggles, with Hamilton enduring a challenging race characterized by both setbacks and glimpses of competitiveness.