MONTE CARLO, CMC – Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was sad after he finished seventh in the Formula 1 Grand Prix on Sunday in Monaco.
However, the British race car driver with Grenadian heritage, who is departing Mercedes for Ferrari at the end of this season, vowed to continue fighting and looked ahead to the Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal.
Hamilton has endured a lean spell with a wonky Mercedes car. He has not won a race over the past three seasons, and his frustrations with being unable to scale the heights of the past boil over from time to time.
The 39-year-old said he was encouraged by the performances of the Silver Arrows after his teammate and fellow Briton, George Russell, finished fifth at the Circuit de Monaco, where future teammate Charles Leclerc and hometown hero secured victory ahead of McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia and Spaniard Carlos Sainz Jr, the Ferrari driver that Hamilton will replace next season.
“The signs of performance this weekend have been encouraging, and three races in a row, we’ve brought upgrades,” Hamilton said.
“That’s positive to see; bit by bit, we’ve got drips coming through, and hopefully, in the next race, I’ll have the front wing, too.”
He added: “I’m excited to go to Canada, but I wouldn’t say I’m excited about the prospect of racing there.
“I don’t see a lot of different happening in Canada… I’ll go to Canada and, as always, give my absolute everything, and it’s good to see the team is bringing performance.”
At the same time, Hamilton suggested a radical shake-up for the Monaco GP, which was first introduced into F1 in 1950 and has been consistently on the calendar since 1955, except during the COVID-19 pandemic four years ago.
Monaco has remained essentially unchanged since the 1970s. As F1 cars have grown more expansive, overtaking has become difficult, reducing the spectacle of the race through the streets of the city-state.
“For this particular weekend, I think they should come up with some new formula for it rather than just be the same,” Hamilton said. “That’s just my opinion. Do you guys [the media] not fall asleep on Sunday watching the race?”
One idea Hamilton offered was introducing Monaco-specific tires, designed to degrade faster to encourage more pit stops.
“Monaco continues to be Monaco; it’s not changed much,” he said. “The cars are getting bigger. You can’t overtake without the risk of colliding, so I wish we had bigger roads and the track could be more comprehensive, but I don’t think that’s ever going to be the case in Monaco because it’s just a tiny place.
“The race is continuously pretty much the same. It’s a one-stop race. Maybe special tires for this race, so you have more pit stops that create more variability.”
Hamilton now has 42 points for the season, which has 16 more races, and he is eighth in the standings. The standings are led by Red Bull Racing driver and three-time defending champion Max Verstappen of the Netherlands, who has 169 points. Leclerc is second with 138, and McLaren driver Lando Norris of Great Britain is third with 113.
In the constructors’ standings, Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT leads the way with 276 points, while Ferrari is second with 252, 68 points ahead of McLaren Mercedes in third, Hamilton’s Mercedes team is fourth with 96, and Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes round out the top five on 44.
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