Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton was suffering from a crisis of confidence going into the Formula 1 summer break.
At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton missed out on scoring points across a race weekend for the first time since joining Ferrari.
He started and finished the race in 12th, briefly suggesting after qualifying that team principal Fred Vasseur should ‘change drivers’, such was his underperformance in his head.
However, Hamilton admitted he still loved racing after the Grand Prix, and there are plenty of reasons for the seven-time world champion to be rejuvenated after the summer shutdown.
Position Drivers’ Championship PointsPts 1 284 2 275 3 187 4 172 5 151 6 109 7 64 8 54 9 37 10 27
Ferrari’s update package introduced at Spa appears to be working, even if Charles Leclerc lost out on victory at the Hungaroring when his race fell off a cliff in the final stint.
If Hamilton can unlock that same potential, there’s no reason why he can’t end his podium drought sooner rather than later.
However, Hamilton’s contract runs until the end of next season, and he will soon have to start considering his next steps after his Ferrari deal expires.
Hamilton controls his one-year extension in his Ferrari deal, but journalist Antonio Ghini believes he’ll have a very different approach to retirement once he reaches that moment than Michael Schumacher.
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Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty ImagesLewis Hamilton unlikely to continue wanting to race like Michael Schumacher after F1 retirement
Ghini was speaking on Motorsport Italia’s YouTube channel about next steps after F1 and said: “I asked him [Schumacher], was he there? Was it perhaps the last time he was officially there, and what will he do now?
“He said, ‘I’m going to swim with the whales!’ He then started this unrealistic attempt to ride a motorbike with the risk of hurting himself, and he had hurt his famous neck.
“Then, he accepted with enthusiasm and confidence the invitation from Mercedes, refusing to use the excuse with his neck.
“But before the negotiation with Mercedes, there was already the possibility of taking back the car that Felipe Massa had left after his accident in Hungary.
SEASONTEAMWINSPOLESPODIUMSPOINTS2008McLaren5710982014Mercedes117163842015Mercedes1011173812017Mercedes911133632018Mercedes1111174082019Mercedes115174132020Mercedes111014347Lewis Hamilton’s Formula 1 drivers’ championship-winning seasons
“Schumacher’s exit had been a very laborious exit. He was no longer finding himself, and the discussion of changing cars for Hamilton is not trivial, because we see it also with Sainz.
“These complicated cars require a lot from some people; there are others who adapt.
“Hamilton is in a situation where he certainly begins to ask himself, ‘Do I continue or do I stop? Do I continue here or somewhere else?
“There would be, I think, no alternative. He’s not someone like Schumacher, for example, about endurance races and so on.
“When you have seven world titles, you find yourself with a question that, if normal people think about it, if you have millions in the bank, all in all, this drama of what to do next would be surmountable.
“I think the moment Hamilton is going through today is a very difficult one psychologically, which won’t happen to Verstappen.
“Verstappen doesn’t have a car to challenge, but he’s calm, serene, and accepted it like this.”
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How Michael Schumacher missed out on an unlikely Ferrari comeback after his first F1 retirement
Schumacher walked away from Ferrari in 2006 after watching Fernando Alonso win back-to-back drivers’ championships.
He made his return to the sport in 2010, something Ghini doesn’t believe Hamilton will do when he eventually decides to retire, but Schumacher could have come back sooner.
Grand Prix starts306Pole positions68Wins91Podiums155Fastest laps77Career points1566World championships7Michael Schumacher’s Formula 1 record
The previous year, Felipe Massa suffered an awful injury at the Hungarian Grand Prix, which ruled him out for the remainder of the campaign.
Ferrari eventually signed Luca Badoer, and then Giancarlo Fisichella when the Italian’s introduction failed to go to plan, but Schumacher was being lined up for a potential return.
However, Schumacher injured his neck in a motorbike accident, and while it didn’t stop him from completing three seasons for Mercedes, it was too early for him to make an emotional comeback with the Scuderia.