Lewis Hamilton has voiced his frustration with his Ferrari team following a strategic decision at the Hungarian Grand Prix that resulted in him losing points in the title race. Hamilton finished fourth on the track at the Hungaroring but, after receiving a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane, was classified fifth. The race was won by McLaren’s Lando Norris, with Max Verstappen of Red Bull finishing second and Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes in third.
Hamilton’s team called him into the pits late in the race for a stop under a virtual safety car. This decision provided him with fresh tyres but cost him valuable track position to Verstappen and Antonelli. He was unable to regain these positions, and it was from this pit stop that he incurred the penalty. The call led Hamilton to question his team’s strategy.
“It was pretty bad. Pretty frustrating,” Hamilton stated. “I definitely don’t think we should have taken the stop but the call came literally just before the pit-lane entry and I didn’t have time to debate.” He added that he would not have stopped if it meant sacrificing track position, believing he could have held onto second or at least third place.
Hamilton was 45 points behind Antonelli before the race but now trails the Italian by 50 points as Formula One enters its summer break. The British driver has also accumulated several penalties in recent races, including one at Silverstone, another at Spa, and a three-place grid drop in Hungary for impeding during qualifying, in addition to the pit-lane speeding penalty during the race.
Hamilton’s Recent Penalties and Outlook
The pit-lane speeding sanction was Hamilton’s second penalty at the Hungaroring within two days, following a three-place grid drop for impeding Oscar Piastri in qualifying. This dropped him from second to fifth on the starting grid for Sunday’s race. He had also received five-second penalties in the two preceding races.
In Belgium, Hamilton was penalised for a collision with George Russell on the opening lap. Two weeks prior, at Silverstone, he received the same sanction for a jump start. Hamilton acknowledged that he has made “lots of mistakes” in recent races and expressed his determination to avoid further penalties.
“I’ll work hard to try and come back, reset,” Hamilton said, noting that the annual shutdown has arrived at an opportune moment. He expressed optimism for Ferrari’s performance in the second half of the season, stating, “The second half will be stronger, usually the second half is a stronger period for me. So I’ll really take this time to reset and try and come back stronger, fitter and better mentally prepared.”
He also highlighted the team’s efforts, saying, “I am massively grateful to the team because they have really done a great job in this first half.” He noted that despite being down on pace and power in the first half of the season, there is more to come in the second half.
Norris’s Performance and McLaren’s Progress
Lando Norris secured his and McLaren’s first victory of the year at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Norris believes his current driving performance is among his best, even suggesting it surpasses his form from last season. He highlighted his ability to extract maximum performance from the car, often pushing to the limit.
“Today I would probably say it was up there with one of my best performances, in terms of extracting performance out of the car and being so close to the limit every single lap,” Norris commented. He added that the team sometimes had to ask him to ease off slightly.
Norris is 91 points behind Antonelli in the championship standings, with 12 races remaining. Despite the significant points gap, Norris, like Hamilton, believes there is still much to contend for in the latter half of the season. He pointed to the effectiveness of the significant upgrades McLaren introduced in Hungary as a positive sign.
Norris expressed satisfaction with the car’s speed, despite finding it challenging to drive at times. “I was convinced I could win the race today and we did. We were just on another level and I felt in a very good flow of things,” he said. The Formula 1 season will resume after the summer break with the Dutch Grand Prix, scheduled from August 21-23.
Source: theguardian.com
As NewsGB.org's Sports News Writer, Theo Marsden reports on rugby union, golf and boxing for readers across the country. He began on a regional sports desk in Yorkshire. He holds a degree in Journalism from the University of Hull and completed an NCTJ diploma. Theo lives in Hull, where he follows the European Tour and amateur rugby. “Sport moves fast; readers deserve it right the first time.”