Hungarian Grand Prix: Hamilton expresses frustrations after ‘useless’ performance

For many Ferrari fans, hearing Hamilton’s dejected appraisal of his performance after the Hungarian Grand Prix was nothing short of painful. It follows a disappointing weekend, where he qualified 12^th and failed to place any higher during the race in early August.

This marks the fourth time Hamilton has found himself unable to qualify in the top 10 this season and led to him labelling his performance on Saturday 2 August as “absolutely useless”. He claimed that he was “very much” looking forward to the break in the F1 calendar, which will grant him a month for reflection.

However, he then said that he would “hopefully” be returning to the sport after summer. As expected, this, alongside Hamilton’s somewhat cryptic comment that “there is a lot going on in the background that is not great” has generated a lot of speculation over whether these issues are personal or racing-related.

Hamilton made it clear that he is not disenchanted with the sport

Among this speculation are the natural and inevitable rumours that he has reached the end of his glory days, and the concerning idea that he may resign at the end of the season, or even imminently.

This only adds to how depressing the recent Ferrari team performance has been. One thing is certain: even though Hamilton may place pressure on the team and the cars to perform, he certainly maintains this intense level of pressure on himself.

No doubt Hamilton’s apparent disillusionment with his performance was exacerbated by fellow Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc earning Ferrari its first pole position this season.

However, Hamilton’s average qualifying deficit to Leclerc this year is only 0.146 seconds, despite his added disadvantage of having to adjust to a new team and car, following his jump from Mercedes to Ferrari. Additionally, the ground-effect cars brought into F1 as of 2022 do not suit Hamilton’s style of late-braking.

Despite his short, clipped answers after the race, Hamilton made it clear that he is not disenchanted with the sport, declaring: “I still love it, I still love the team.”

Fred Vassuer, Ferrari team principal, was confident in his assertions that Lewis will return, and assured that Hamilton’s response “is normal” and that “he will come back”. He attributed it to Hamilton being “demanding with the team, with the car, with the engineers, with the mechanics, with myself but first of all, he’s very demanding with himself”, claiming that this is “why he’s a seven-time world champion”.

There is still hope for Hamilton’s future in the sport

Vasseur also pointed to Ferrari’s failed gamble on a one-stop strategy, beginning on hard tyres on the Hungary track which is notoriously difficult to overtake on.

Despite the seven-time world champion’s downcast comments, there is still hope for Hamilton’s future in the sport. As Toto Wolff, team principal at Mercedes AMG Petronas and Hamilton’s old boss, pointed out, with Ferrari continuing to gradually improve their cars, and the new driving style that next year’s new cars will inevitably bring, Hamilton could be given the opportunity to reclaim former glory.

It seems unlikely that Hamilton would not return for the Dutch GP on the 31 August, despite his downhearted reflection on yet another disappointing race. Regarding his long-term future, how long he remains in the sport remains to be seen, as he seems to drift increasingly further away from the possibility of an eighth title.