Lewis Hamilton wants to take advantage of the presence of the two Ferraris at the front to play as a team at Monza and try to beat George Russell on Sunday.
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Lewis Hamilton still believes in a Ferrari victory in front of the tifosi. After qualifying was more complicated than expected at Monza, the Briton believes that the Scuderia still has a real opportunity for the Italian Grand Prix.
Initially fifth in qualifying behind his teammate Charles Leclerc, Hamilton gains a position thanks to the three-place penalty given to Oscar Piastri. The two Ferraris will thus start side by side from the second row, Leclerc third and Hamilton fourth.
A situation that could allow the Scuderia to play as a team to put pressure on George Russell, second on the grid behind the surprising poleman Pierre Gasly.
Hamilton frustrated by his qualifying
Ferrari had shown serious ambitions since the start of the weekend. Very competitive during free practice, the Italian cars seemed capable of fighting for pole position.
Qualifying turned out to be much more delicate.
Hamilton even narrowly avoided elimination in Q2, saving his place in Q3 by only one thousandth against Gabriel Bortoleto. The seven-time world champion then failed to find the same pace in the final part of the session.
The Briton notably feels he was penalized by the management of his pit exit and by the lack of slipstream.
“As everyone expected, Charles didn’t want to go out first. We had to wait, wait again, and we finally only got one attempt. That made things quite difficult for us,” explains Hamilton.
“Everyone left while my engine was running”
The situation got even more complicated in Q3. Hamilton recounts finding himself isolated when the other drivers left the pits.
“In Q3, I didn’t even have the wheels on the car yet while everyone left while my engine was running. I went out about 25 seconds behind the others.”
On a circuit like Monza, this delay is far from insignificant. The slipstream allows you to gain precious time on the huge straights of the Italian circuit.
But it also changes the driver’s braking points when arriving in braking zones.
“It completely threw me off my rhythm because when you follow another car and benefit from its slipstream, you arrive much faster. So the braking zones are different.”
Conversely, driving alone represents a significant disadvantage.
“When you’re alone and lose the slipstream, you lose a lot of time.”
Read more Charles Leclerc demands answers from Ferrari after a worrying anomaly in Monza
Piastri’s penalty changes the game
Hamilton had ultimately finished qualifying in fifth place, just behind Leclerc. But the evening brought good news for Ferrari.
Piastri, third fastest in the session, was penalized three places on the grid for blocking Liam Lawson during Q2. The Australian drops to sixth, allowing Leclerc, Hamilton, and Max Verstappen each to gain a position.
Ferrari now has its two cars directly behind Gasly and Russell.
“It’s obviously positive to move up on the grid,” admits Hamilton.
This new configuration could especially open up more strategic possibilities for the Scuderia.
Hamilton wants Ferrari to play as a team
The seven-time world champion notably identifies Russell as one of the main targets at the start. With two Ferraris behind the Mercedes, Hamilton wants his team to exploit this numerical advantage.
“We obviously have a chance to fight with George. There’s only one Mercedes ahead of us,” he emphasizes.
Hence his very clear call to Ferrari before the race.
“So I hope this will give us the opportunity to work as a team to try to beat them.”
Hamilton thus seems ready to favor a collective approach to maximize Ferrari’s chances, rather than immediately turning the start into an internal duel with Leclerc.
Ferrari dreams of a victory in front of the tifosi
The Scuderia has an ideal opportunity to shine in front of its home crowd. Leclerc and Hamilton will start third and fourth, while Piastri and Lando Norris, respectively sixth and eighth, are further back on the grid.
There is also the threat of Verstappen, who will start fifth after also benefiting from Piastri’s penalty.
Up front, Gasly is the big unknown. Alpine showed impressive speed in qualifying, but Ferrari will now have to determine if the French car also has the pace to resist for 53 laps.
Hamilton knows what a victory at Monza means. Already a five-time winner of the Italian Grand Prix in his career, he now dreams of triumphing there for the first time dressed in red.
With Leclerc third and Hamilton fourth, Ferrari has two cards to play against Russell and Gasly. And for Hamilton, the instruction is clear: the Scuderia must unite its forces if it wants to offer the tifosi the victory they dream of at Monza.
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