While Charles Leclerc stole pole position from McLaren and managed to fend them both off for the first 40 laps of the race, his teammate Lewis Hamilton was really struggling around the Hungaroring.
Hamilton qualified P12 and tried to stay out long in his first stint in hopes of a safety car or having a tire delta over those in front of him later in the race. However, there was no safety car and passing proved to be too difficult in Hungary, which led to a P12 finish for the eight-time Hungarian GP race winner.
Charles Leclerc thinks this weekend was a one-off for Hamilton
After a disappointing ending to Charles Leclerc’s race, which saw him finish off the podium, Leclerc was asked about Hamilton’s weekend. He said as much as he wants to beat Hamilton, he wants him and the team to do well. He believes this was a one-off and that Hamilton will be back better than ever after the summer break.
“At the end, we are one team, and as much as I want to finish in front of Lewis, I want both of us to be successful, and Ferrari to be successful,” Leclerc told the media. “Obviously this weekend has been a tough one for Lewis, but I have no doubt it’s a one-off, and I’m sure the second part of the season will be a lot more positive.”
While Leclerc thinks the second part of the season will be better for the team, he admits they don’t expect to have too many more opportunities to win a race, which makes his struggles in the last stint all the more frustrating.
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“I don’t think we are going into the second half of the season thinking that we can win anywhere, and that’s what makes the frustration even bigger, because we knew that this was one opportunity probably over the season and we had to take it, but unfortunately, with this issue, we couldn’t do much.”
Ferrari heads into the summer break with a 24-point lead over Mercedes in the constructors’ championship. They’ll need both drivers to be on their A game after the break if they want to secure P2 in the championship.
Hamilton is glad the Hungarian GP is over
After a difficult weekend in Spa where he was bounced in SQ1 and Q1, Hamilton came to Hungary – statistically one of his best tracks – with hopes of bouncing back. However, he struggled to come to grips with the car in practices and was once again an early exit in qualifying.
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After the race, Hamilton was very frustrated when speaking to the media. He told them he’s “glad it’s over” and he can now head into a much-needed summer break.
Hamilton’s first season with Ferrari has not gone as he imagined. He’s yet to get a podium in a featured race and just can’t seem to get a good feel for the car. This will be a much-needed break for Hamilton as he tries to come back stronger after the summer break.
