Lewis Hamilton didn’t mince words after the Canadian Grand Prix, acknowledging that his performance in Montreal was far from his best, despite clinching his highest finish of the season.
In a challenging race marked by mistakes and missed opportunities, Hamilton finished fourth, just missing out on a podium spot to his Mercedes teammate, George Russell. Starting seventh on the grid, Hamilton admitted he struggled to carry over his form from practice to qualifying and spent much of the race behind Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.
The mixed weather conditions didn’t help, and although Hamilton managed to jump ahead of Alonso during the first safety car period, he found it hard to maintain his position. Logan Sargeant’s crash triggered the safety car, allowing Hamilton to latch onto the leading pack. Following another neutralization, he moved past Russell and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, but it wasn’t enough to secure a podium finish.
Russell’s choice of medium tyres in the final stages of the race turned out to be crucial, helping him reclaim his spot on the podium. Reflecting on his performance in an interview with Sky Sports F1, Hamilton described the weekend as one of his worst. ‘Over the weekend, it was a really poor performance from myself. Yesterday, some other things came into it but [it was] mostly myself and then today, just one of the worst races I have driven, lots of mistakes,’ he confessed.
Despite his personal disappointment, Hamilton acknowledged the progress made by Mercedes, credited to a new front wing that improved the car’s performance. ‘A big thank you to everyone back at the factory because it is becoming a car we can fight with. That is the real positive going into the next part of the season,’ he remarked.
Hamilton remains optimistic about upcoming upgrades and the potential for better results. ‘I know we have some more upgrades, hopefully, coming along the way. So it is going to be a close battle and if I get my head on right, I will get better results at some stage,’ he added. However, he couldn’t hide his frustration, noting, ‘I think this weekend, the car was capable of winning. That’s why it is not such a great feeling. But we will take the points and keep trying.’
When asked what he could have done differently, Hamilton was candid. ‘I could have just driven better with less mistakes. I was stuck behind Fernando so there was nothing I could really do there. Lots of mistakes over the weekend as a whole, but lots of positives to take in terms of performance, so [I’ll] try and improve for the next race,’ he concluded.
Lewis Hamilton’s reflective yet optimistic viewpoint sets the stage for the remainder of the F1 season, as he seeks to capitalize on new upgrades and his own potential to deliver stronger performances in the races to come.
Source: Motorsport
