Lewis Hamilton believes Ferrari has a good chance of being in contention at the Monaco Grand Prix, while refusing to make them an absolute favorite against Mercedes and their recent progress.
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The Monaco circuit, with its tight corners and long low-speed phases, should better suit the characteristics of the SF-26 than faster circuits like Montreal.
Lewis Hamilton particularly emphasizes that the limitations of the Ferrari in a straight line will be less penalizing there than in recent races.
“I would say this circuit suits us better than some others,” Hamilton explained to the media this Thursday.
The Briton insists that performance differences related to engine power should be less pronounced on the Monegasque track.
“On the straights we had, for example in Montreal, we lost quite a bit of time, and here we will lose much less. I don’t think power will be such a big issue here,” he added.
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Ferrari expected to be in the mix, but not absolute favorite
Despite this more favorable context, the seven-time world champion refuses to place Ferrari in an absolute position of strength for the victory.
He believes that the competition remains extremely tight, especially against Mercedes, which arrives in Monaco with significant improvements.
“Our car is good at low speed, so I think we will be competitive. I don’t necessarily think we will be the fastest, especially with Mercedes’ improvements in the last race, but I think we will be competitive,” Hamilton specified.
A very open battle ahead
With Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren regularly cited among the potential favorites, Monaco once again promises to be an extremely tight weekend, where qualifying could be even more decisive than the race.
Ferrari seems to have a real opportunity, but Hamilton clearly prefers to remain cautious before talking about victory.
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