Lewis Hamilton Feels at One with Ferrari Car Following Imola Race

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has hailed his fourth-place finish in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix as a “mega” race, marking the first time since his China sprint win that he felt in sync with his Ferrari Formula 1 car.

Hamilton’s Difficult Campaign Turned Around at Imola

Hamilton’s shock pole-to-flag victory in Shanghai proved to be an outlier in what has otherwise been a challenging season for the British driver, who was hoping for better results on his fresh start in a new environment. Initially, it seemed unlikely that Imola would turn things around for him after he qualified 12th, one spot behind team-mate Charles Leclerc. However, Hamilton demonstrated strong race pace and utilized strategy and a touch of fortune from the safety car timings to move up the order.

The seven-time world champion felt that this was the first time since his momentous China win that he felt at one with the Ferrari car, which has received subtle upgrades this weekend. “China was pretty great, but I’ve always loved when you’re fighting from further back and coming through,” Hamilton said. “That’s how I started off as a kid. That’s always a better feeling than starting and finishing first. But definitely an absolutely mega race and so many positives to take away.

Ferrari’s Puzzling Qualifying Pace Remains a Concern

One negative remains Ferrari‘s puzzling qualifying pace, with both Hamilton and Leclerc failing to make the cut in Q2 at the expense of cars from Williams, Alpine, Aston Martin, and Racing Bulls. “We’ve just got to unlock the potential in qualifying,” he acknowledged. “If we had qualified [higher up] we would have been fighting for a podium, which is something we didn’t think would be possible.

Hamilton’s Home Debut as a Ferrari Driver a Success

Hamilton’s morale-boosting race came at the perfect time as he made his home debut as a Ferrari driver in front of a record number of spectators, with 242,000 attending over all days combined. “It’s been incredible, what an amazing experience,” the 40-year-old gushed. Hamilton shared that he took a picture of the memorial for Ayrton Senna during the driver’s parade lap and marveled at the sea of red in the crowd, reminiscent of his childhood memories watching Michael Schumacher race with . “It was quite an incredible experience to think that I’m now here in one of the two s,” he added. “And having that connection with such a large passion, for me it’s unbelievable.