Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has branded the Canadian Grand Prix one of the worst races he has ever driven.

The Briton started the race in seventh, but was unable to make a move on his old foe Fernando Alonso who was running ahead.

When the Safety Car was deployed following Logan Sargeant's crash, Hamilton managed to undercut his Spanish rival to claim fifth where he remained for much of the remainder of the afternoon.

In the final laps, Hamilton, who was on hards, was clearly quicker than his medium-shod teammate and Oscar Piastri, and having passed Russell on Lap 63, subsequently passed the Australian also to claim third with just three laps remaining.

However in the few remaining laps Russell's mediums came back into the zone and the youngster was able to retake the position from his teammate.

A strong performance in final practice and the early stages of qualifying, was followed by a tough Q3 in which the seven-time champ was unable to get his working on his final run.

Asked after the race if his mood had improved, Hamilton replied: "Not really much different...

"Over the weekend, it was a really poor performance from myself," he continued. "Yesterday, some other things came into it but it was mostly myself and then today, just one of the worst races I have driven... lots of mistakes.

"Of course, if I had qualified better, I would have been in a much better position," he admitted. "So it is what it is, I will go back to the drawing board."

Nonetheless, with his teammate having claimed pole, and the pair finishing the race third and fourth, Canada had been better than some of the other recent performances.

"Thanks to everyone back at the factory it is becoming a car we can fight with," said Hamilton. "That is the real positive going into the next part of the season. I know we have some more upgrades, hopefully, coming along the way. So it is going to be a close battle and if I get my head on right, I will get better results at some stage.

"I think this weekend, the car was capable of winning. That's why it is not such a great feeling. But we will take the points and keep trying.

"I could have just driven better with less mistakes," he insisted. "I was stuck behind Fernando so there was nothing I could really do there.

"Lots of mistakes over the weekend as a whole, but lots of positives to take in terms of performance, so I'll try and improve for the next race."

Check out our Sunday gallery from Montreal here.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by kenji, 14/06/2024 1:09

"That's the interesting thing about Ferrari. There is little doubt that Ferrari are F1 in so many ways. Despite their somewhat flawed performance record overall they are still a hot product in global awareness."

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2. Posted by givememychoice, 12/06/2024 13:09

"@ricardo, absolutely agree with why people go there, and sure, stats are always bendable. Hamilton may go and do well, but I was just surprised that Chester was getting so many down votes for saying it may not end well. Historically, sure, williams is good to go to - not so good if you have just won with them!

Fair cop on Andretti, I admit I was just going through a list of Ferrari drivers by year. ( I get a bit ropey pre about 1985).

I do think that Ferrari are the perennial underachievers. Remove the brawn/todt/schumacher era, then its only 3 drivers champions in 60 years"

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3. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 11/06/2024 18:25

"@givememychoice - it’s likely that the prestige of driving the red car, together with the salaries it can offer, means that the top drivers (those that have proven themselves elsewhere) tend to end up at Ferrari. Hence it attracts more than its fair share of former world champions.

If you look solely at the historical records, Hamilton’s best bet would be a Williams seat! As far as I can recall, no former world champion has ever joined Williams and failed to win another championship with the team (Senna excluded for obvious reasons). On the other hand, no team has had anywhere near as many former champions drive for it as Ferrari has, so it’s a bit of an unfair comparison.

By the way, I don’t think you should include Mario to the Ferrari list. He only did 2 races as a stand-in driver in 1982. "

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4. Posted by givememychoice, 11/06/2024 10:46

"No idea why Chester is getting so many negative votes. How did it work out for drivers who had been a world champion prior to going to ferrari?
Vettel
Raikkonen (2nd stint)
Alonso
Andretti
Farina

Only Fangio and Schumacher have won the WC with Ferrari having previously won else where."

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5. Posted by Chester, 10/06/2024 18:10

"The history of accomplished drivers arriving at Ferrari as aged-aces does not bode well for a man who emotes every bump in the road."

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6. Posted by kenji, 10/06/2024 11:47

"If the whining of Hamilton continues like this then Fred is in for a solid dose of 'buyers remorse'."

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Hamilton brands Canada his worst performance

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