Lewis Hamilton has revealed that the “pressure” associated with representing Ferrari in Formula 1 has made his debut season with the team “not the most enjoyable”.
Hamilton’s move to Ferrari generated unprecedented attention over the winter, but that has proven to be a hindrance as his results have not lived up to the initial hype.
The seven-time F1 champion is still awaiting his maiden podium in red, while he has trailed home behind team-mate Charles Leclerc on all but two occasions to date.
However, Hamilton had appeared to be reducing the gap to Leclerc until he endured another setback to his adaptation in the double-header before the summer break.
Having missed out on a place in Q3 in Belgium, Hamilton proceeded to state he is “useless” and suggested Ferrari should replace him as he qualified 12th in Hungary.
But with the recent shutdown providing him the chance to reset, the Briton is aiming to rediscover the passion that had dwindled during his opening months at Ferrari.
When asked whether he was confident about turning the page, Hamilton told media including Motorsport Week: “I feel determined to and motivated to, yes.
“Just going to be working, we’re going to work hard, keep our heads down, try to change a few things in our approach and start to enjoy ourselves.
“There’s been so much pressure in this first half of the season [that] it’s not been the most enjoyable.
“So I think just remembering that we love what we do, we’re all in this together, and yeah, we’ll try and have some fun.”
What has caused Hamilton’s Ferrari experience to be less enjoyable?
Hamilton explained that the vast engagements he had to fulfil upon arriving at F1’s most iconic team had served to dilute his initial excitement about his dream move.
“I think just ultimately just to get on top of everything, the amount of work we have, all the new partners, the amount of shoots we’ve done,
getting integrated into a new team, and it’s a big, big team,” he added. “It’s the biggest brand in our sport as well, so the combination of all those different things has been a lot.”
Hamilton, who disconnected during the break with friends and family, divulged his ambition across the remaining rounds is to restore the love that drew him to racing.
“I think it’s probably the most important part, because that’s the reason I got into this sport,” he expressed.
“Because it was fun for me, and I think for anyone in whatever career you’re in, if you’re not enjoying what you’re doing, then why are you doing it?
“And there can often be so much noise, you can lose sight of what’s really, really important, so that’s why I’m saying I just really want to focus on getting back to that enjoyment.
“I’ve joined the team that I’ve always dreamed of driving for, and there’s been so much noise around that it’s kind of clouded us from getting to enjoy it.
“So now it’s about kind of moving those things aside, and just getting back to focusing on the pure love of what we do.”
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