'he Definitely Has It', So Why Did Hamilton Say He Was Useless?

Lewis Hamilton insisted he "still loves" Formula 1 aft his astir challenging play of his Ferrari profession truthful acold astatine nan Hungarian Grand Prix.

On Saturday, Hamilton had said he was "just useless" aft nan seven-time champion qualified 12th connected nan grid, while his team-mate Charles Leclerc took Ferrari's first expansive prix rod position of nan season.

On Sunday, Hamilton vanished successful nan aforesaid place, while Leclerc, aft fighting pinch nan race-winning McLarens for nan first two-thirds of nan race, faded to 4th place, his car apparently afflicted by a problem successful nan last stint.

Hamilton said he felt "the same" arsenic he had aft qualifying. He said: "There's a batch going connected successful nan inheritance that is not… great, so…" But added: "I'm judge location are positives to return from nan play and I'm judge there's learnings."

As is often nan lawsuit erstwhile Hamilton struggles, not only does his temper plumb nan depths, but nan F1 rumour mill spins into overdrive.

Was Hamilton complete nan hill, immoderate wondered aft qualifying? Would he moreover discontinue Ferrari astatine nan extremity of nan year, aliases possibly moreover earlier nan extremity of nan season?

That one, astatine least, Hamilton rejected, saying he would beryllium backmost successful nan car astatine nan Dutch Grand Prix astatine nan extremity of August aft F1's summertime break.

"I'm looking guardant to coming back," he said. "I'll beryllium back, yeah."

Anyone who knows Hamilton, and his determination, and refusal to springiness up, knows nan answers to nan different questions astir his future, too.

Leclerc's performance, successful nan aftermath of immoderate upgrades connected nan Ferrari car astatine slightest gives him immoderate room for optimism.

"Definitely immoderate improvements that person been made connected nan upgrades," Hamilton said. "Naturally, it's a shame we're not arsenic competitory arsenic nan guys astatine nan front, but you've seen Charles has had a really beardown tally of nan past 2 races.

"The car is decidedly progressing, truthful we person to support trying to extract much from it."

Team main Frederic Vasseur injected immoderate position into Hamilton's situation.

"For judge erstwhile you are 7 times world champion, your team-mate is successful rod position and you are retired successful Q2, it's a reliable situation," Vasseur said.

On nan title result, Vasseur pointed retired that Ferrari had gambled connected a one-stop strategy starting connected nan difficult tyre connected a way wherever overtaking is notoriously difficult, and it "didn't work."

"I tin understand nan vexation from Lewis," he said, "but this is normal, and he will travel back."

Vasseur, who was instrumental successful persuading Hamilton to time off Mercedes to subordinate Ferrari for this season, pointed retired that nan results successful Hungary made his driver's play look worse than it was.

Yes, Hamilton had been 0.247 seconds slower than Leclerc erstwhile he was knocked retired of qualifying aft nan 2nd session. But Leclerc himself had recovered it difficult to progress, and Hamilton had been conscionable 0.155secs adrift of his team-mate successful nan first session.

The past 2 races person seen a stall successful nan affirmative momentum Hamilton had been building aft a difficult commencement to his Ferrari career.

Since Miami successful early May, location has been small to take betwixt nan 2 drivers successful qualifying, and Hamilton out-qualified Leclerc successful 3 of nan 4 races earlier Belgium, a week earlier qualifying.

Two errors of different kinds successful nan qualifying sessions for nan sprint and expansive prix astatine Spa made Hamilton look uncompetitive erstwhile he was thing but.

Hamilton was a lucifer for Leclerc connected gait successful Belgium, but an disconnected followed by a rotation caused by a operation of factors relating to a caller braking worldly saw him retired successful nan first convention successful sprint qualifying, and nan aforesaid point happened erstwhile he misjudged nan exit of nan 180mph+ swerves astatine Eau Rouge and went somewhat extracurricular way limits successful qualifying for nan expansive prix.

Even pinch nan problems successful Belgium and Hungary, and nan request to accommodate to a caller car of very different characteristics astatine nan commencement of nan season, Hamilton's mean qualifying shortage to Leclerc is 0.146 seconds this year.

That's not what Hamilton would expect of himself, but it should beryllium viewed successful nan discourse of that Ferrari - and galore others successful F1 - respect Leclerc arsenic nan fastest driver complete a azygous thigh successful nan world.

Hamilton's critics constituent to his struggles against George Russell successful his last play astatine Mercedes past year.

The 40-year-old has recovered nan ground-effect cars introduced into F1 successful 2022 do not fresh his late-braking style arsenic good arsenic nan erstwhile procreation of cars. And it does stay a enigma that he has not been capable to accommodate arsenic good arsenic would person been expected, aliases apparently arsenic good arsenic different drivers.

But Vasseur rejected immoderate thought that he mightiness beryllium worried astir Hamilton's situation.

"He's demanding," Vasseur said, "but I deliberation it's besides why he's 7 times world champion, that he's demanding pinch nan team, pinch nan car, pinch nan engineers, pinch nan mechanics, pinch myself also. But first of each he's very demanding pinch himself."

Toto Wolff, Hamilton's erstwhile squad leader astatine Mercedes, was asked astir Hamilton's downbeat self-assessment.

"That is Lewis wearing his bosom connected nan sleeve," he said. "It's what he thought very overmuch erstwhile he was asked aft nan session. It was very raw.

"He was doubting himself, and we had it successful nan past erstwhile he felt that he underperformed his ain expectations and your team-mate is connected pole, and he's been that emotionally transparent since he was a young boy aliases young adult."

As for Hamilton's wide performances, Wolff said: "He's nan GOAT, and he will ever beryllium nan GOAT, and nobody's going to return that away. That's thing he needs to ever remember, that he's nan top of each times.

"Lewis has unfinished business successful Formula 1. In nan aforesaid measurement that Mercedes underperformed complete this latest group of regulations since 2022, we benignant of ne'er sewage happy pinch ground-effect cars. And successful nan aforesaid way, it spot him.

"Maybe it's linked to driving style. So he shouldn't spell anywhere. Next twelvemonth is marque caller cars, wholly different to drive, caller power-units that request an intelligent measurement of managing nan energy."

Can Hamilton still triumph that elusive eighth title, Wolff was asked?

"If he has a car underneath him that he has assurance in, that does what he wants, past yes," he replied.

"If he has a car that it's not giving him nan feedback that he wants, and that was nan Mercedes of nan past fewer years, and that seems to beryllium nan Ferrari, and moreover worse, past not.

"But you inquire maine whether he has it, he decidedly has it."