Lewis Hamilton is one of, if not the most accomplished drivers to ever sit in a Formula 1 car. So, to see him jump out of a car and tell the media that he's "useless" and the team needs to change drivers, tells you that he is really having some serious struggles in his first season with Ferrari.
And, unfortunately, the results reflect that.
The latest issue in Hamilton's maiden campaign with the Scuderia came at, of all places, the Hungaroring, a track at which Hamilton has won eight times and taken pole nine times.
Through the three practice sessions, both Ferraris managed to stay in the top 6, with the McLarens unsurprisingly doing well, while the Aston Martins kind of came out of nowhere thanks to either upgrades or a high-downforce circuit that suits their car (which, if you recall a few seasons ago, high-downforce tracks were their bread and butter).
So, it didn't seem like too big a lift for Hamilton to wind up somewhere within the first three rows of the grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
But, in a stunner, Hamilton was knocked out in Q2 with a lap that was several tenths off of his teammate, Charles Leclerc.
Unfortunately for Lewis, things got worse when his teammate Charles Leclerc — who had said earlier in the week that the Hungaroring is not one of his favorite circuits — dropped a stunning final lap to take pole.
While Leclerc remarked to F1TV and Fox IndyCar commentator James Hinchcliffe that this was one of the best poles of his career because of how it came out of nowhere, that won't make things easier on Hamilton, who was clearly frustrated with himself.
"I’m useless, absolutely useless," Hamilton told Formula1.com after the session. "The team, they have no problem – you’ve seen the car is on pole. So, they probably need to change (the) driver."
Whoa.
As I said, Hamilton is one of the best drivers ever. This is a seven-time champ with 105 wins, 104 poles, and 202 podiums, so if anyone can get back on track after a first half (and a little more) that has been as tough as this one, it's him.
One potential bright spot is that after an even worse qualifying, in which he was knocked out in Q3 in Belgium (then started from the pitlane), and dropped an incredible recovery drive to finish P7 and was named Driver of the Day.
However — and this is a big however — Spa is a much better circuit for overtaking than the Hungaroring is, which means just getting into the points would be a win.
F1 begins its summer break after Sunday's Grand Prix, and I think that's probably good timing for Lewis Hamilton.
from The Latest & Most Breaking News With OutKick https://ift.tt/pN3hUYT