Victim of a spectacular off-track excursion before the Belgian Grand Prix qualifying, Lewis Hamilton explained that the repairs made to his Ferrari had an impact on the behavior of his car.
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Lewis Hamilton experienced a particularly eventful Saturday at Spa-Francorchamps. Just hours before the Belgian Grand Prix qualifying, the seven-time world champion heavily damaged his Ferrari during the third free practice session.
The British driver lost control of his SF-26 at the exit of the Fagnes sector, before hitting the barriers with the rear of his car. The impact caused significant damage, notably to the rear suspension and the wing.
For Ferrari, the challenge was then considerable: to restore the car in a very short time to allow Hamilton to participate in qualifying. The Scuderia mechanics succeeded in this mission, allowing the driver to return to the track a few hours later.
Hamilton satisfied despite a different car
Despite the difficult circumstances, Hamilton managed to secure sixth place in qualifying, just behind his teammate Charles Leclerc. A result he considers satisfactory given the context.
“The guys did an incredible job repairing the car. These things happen, you just have to move on.”
The Briton also believes he got the most out of his car during the qualifying session.
“I did my best in qualifying. I think my laps were pretty good.”
However, Hamilton acknowledged that his Ferrari was no longer exactly in the same configuration as before his accident. The emergency work done by the team changed some settings, especially at the rear of the car.
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A balance less effective than in free practice
Before his crash, Hamilton showed a good pace during FP3 and seemed particularly comfortable with his Ferrari. But after the repairs, the car’s behavior was no longer exactly the same.
“Something wasn’t exactly the same with the rear suspension, so the balance was no longer the same as in FP3, where the car was really working very well.”
The Ferrari driver nevertheless wanted to thank his team for their hard work to get the car back on track.
“They worked until the last minute to repair the car, and I’m grateful they succeeded.”
Questions before the race
With sixth place on the grid, Hamilton keeps an interesting position ahead of the Grand Prix. Ferrari will however have to ensure that the car regains the behavior observed before the accident.
The Briton especially hopes that the adjustments made in urgency will not penalize his race pace.
“I just hope the balance will still be good on Sunday.”
After several encouraging performances with Ferrari in recent weeks, Hamilton will now aim to convert this sixth place into a solid result, on a circuit where overtaking opportunities remain numerous.
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