Hamilton Vows to 'hit 'em Hard' at Silverstone After France Flop
Despite a second costly mistake in successive races, Lewis Hamilton believes he can bounce back
A defiant Lewis Hamilton came out fighting last night, insisting that after two dismal races he would raise his game and "hit 'em hard" in the British grand prix at Silverstone on Sunday week.
On the day he finished a disappointing 10th in the French race, after taking a drive-through penalty for straight-lining a corner, Hamilton also told the media that he was not worried about what was being written about him as he was strong enough to deal with criticism.
The next fortnight is crucial for the British driver as the focus turns to Silverstone, where he will be out to make up for a disappointing debut last year in front of his home fans. In 2007 Hamilton qualified in pole position but faded to fourth after a minor mistake at a refueling stop, allowing his car to move forward a couple of feet before he was ready to be signaled back into the race. "I aim to bounce back there 100%, no matter what might be written in the papers tomorrow," he said. "I'm going to the workshop tomorrow to focus on the next race and we're going to hit 'em hard."
At Magny-Cours, in a race won by the Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, Hamilton was hampered by a 10-place grid penalty stemming from his collision with Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari in the pit lane at Montreal, and the drive-through penalty for cutting out the apex of a corner early in the race while dicing with Sebastian Vettel.
"No, I kept pushing," he said. "Nothing will ever distract me, no matter how many penalties they give me." Hamilton said he thought he had correctly handled the incident for which he was later penalized.
"I was able to pass a few people at Turn Five and thought I'd passed fairly at Turn Seven," he said. "I was ahead [of Vettel] going into the corner, but lost the back end and had to correct the slide, which put me over the kerb. I don't see that as cheating particularly.
"I entered the corner and thought I was ahead on the outside - I couldn't turn in on the guy or we would have crashed, so I took the outside line, lost the back on the marbles and went over the kerb. I continued because I don't believe I overtook him by going over the kerb."
On the day he finished a disappointing 10th in the French race, after taking a drive-through penalty for straight-lining a corner, Hamilton also told the media that he was not worried about what was being written about him as he was strong enough to deal with criticism.
The next fortnight is crucial for the British driver as the focus turns to Silverstone, where he will be out to make up for a disappointing debut last year in front of his home fans. In 2007 Hamilton qualified in pole position but faded to fourth after a minor mistake at a refueling stop, allowing his car to move forward a couple of feet before he was ready to be signaled back into the race. "I aim to bounce back there 100%, no matter what might be written in the papers tomorrow," he said. "I'm going to the workshop tomorrow to focus on the next race and we're going to hit 'em hard."
At Magny-Cours, in a race won by the Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, Hamilton was hampered by a 10-place grid penalty stemming from his collision with Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari in the pit lane at Montreal, and the drive-through penalty for cutting out the apex of a corner early in the race while dicing with Sebastian Vettel.
"No, I kept pushing," he said. "Nothing will ever distract me, no matter how many penalties they give me." Hamilton said he thought he had correctly handled the incident for which he was later penalized.
"I was able to pass a few people at Turn Five and thought I'd passed fairly at Turn Seven," he said. "I was ahead [of Vettel] going into the corner, but lost the back end and had to correct the slide, which put me over the kerb. I don't see that as cheating particularly.
"I entered the corner and thought I was ahead on the outside - I couldn't turn in on the guy or we would have crashed, so I took the outside line, lost the back on the marbles and went over the kerb. I continued because I don't believe I overtook him by going over the kerb."
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