Lewis Hamilton says he felt like he was “in a different category” at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, and adds perhaps the team “haven’t made big enough changes”.

After a tough Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, that he finished in P9, Lewis Hamilton said Mercedes needs to make “big changes” with their car.

“The car is relatively good in the low-speed and not so bad in the medium but in the high-speed we are miles off,” the Briton said.

“It was like I was in a different category when I was going through the high-speed compared to the other guys around me.

“It’s frustrated for sure to be, for three years in a row, to almost be in the same position.

“It’s definitely tough but we’ll get our heads down and keep working away. I know everyone back at the factory is pushing as hard as they can.

“But we definitely need to make some big changes. We haven’t made big enough changes perhaps.

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“If you look at the three teams ahead of us, they still have a different concept to where we are in some areas. So we have some performance to add, that’s for sure.”

In the race, when the Safety Car came out, Mercedes decided to split the strategy between their drivers, but the gamble did not pay off for Lewis, who was left on the track on medium tyres.

“I think it was worth trying something different, splitting the cars and trying the different strategies.

“Ultimately, that’s always the goal, to try and do something a little bit different, particularly when we are in the position we are in.

“I was fighting as hard as I could to go long and I was hoping for a Safety Car or something, but was just unfortunate,” Hamilton concluded.