Lewis Hamilton has a fantastic record at the British GP. The seven-time world champion has won nine races at his home event, the most of any driver at a specific circuit. The 40-year-old has also stepped on the podium at every Grand Prix held at Silverstone since the 2014 season.
Ferrari looked quick in the three practice sessions, with Hamilton himself topping the timing sheets in FP1. However, Ferrari’s pace didn’t materialise into a good qualifying session, with Hamilton lining up in P5 and Leclerc starting one place further back. However, despite this setback, Hamilton will still push to win his home Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton aims high at the British GP
Lewis Hamilton had admitted before the British GP that Silverstone would be a “special place” for the Brit to get his first podium with Ferrari. Hamilton has a best finish of P4, achieved in Imola and Austria, but is striving to finish in the top 3 in Scarlett Red. He also finished first at Shanghai’s Sprint.
However, qualifying at the British GP has put him on the back foot. Ferrari looked competitive during the practice sessions, and this made McLaren worried. However, both drivers were two-tenths off Max Verstappen’s pole position lap. The car looked unstable during the last couple of corners, costing both drivers time.
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However, Hamilton remained upbeat about his chances of at a minimum, finishing on the podium. He said: “We either gotta get a podium tomorrow, or a win somehow. My spirit needs it.”
The good news for Ferrari is that the SF-25 had a strong race pace on Friday. This will give the Scuderia hope of moving up the field. There are also mixed conditions predicted for Sunday, something which Hamilton is adept at. His last win in Silverstone in 2024 was helped by wet weather, as was his first. This race is far from over for the seven-time world champion.
Lando Norris is not counting Lewis Hamilton out of the running
With the strong pace shown by Ferrari on Friday, no one is counting them out of the running. The top six all qualified within 0.23 seconds of each other, meaning the race could be close.
Lando Norris is not counting anyone out who will start in the top 6. He said: “I’m looking forward to it because I think it can be a great race with Mercedes, Ferrari, Max and us. There is opportunity for everyone.”
“It can be exciting because everyone is on quite different downforce levels and has their strengths and weaknesses in different places so it should be good to watch.”
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McLaren team principal Andrea Stella agreed with Norris, saying: “Looking at the lap times that Ferrari have been able to pull off in every single session, Ferrari seem to be the strongest team. Probably they still are the strongest team.”
Despite Hamilton starting further down the pecking order than he wanted, Silverstone is a track where overtaking is possible. He has shown many times around this track his best form during difficult seasons. Can he pull off yet another podium or even the win? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
