Sunday Times

Vettel the man to beat as Hamilton tries to get a grip

- Key battles

A HAPPY if not confident Lewis Hamilton this week returned to the place where it all began, a decade after claiming his first Formula One victory in the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix.

Speaking at a routine pre-race news conference ahead of the 50th running of the popular North American event, he revealed a flash of deeply held emotion when he recalled seeing his father in the crowd below the podium 10 years previously.

“It was the most amazing experience,” said Hamilton, who claimed his maiden victory in his sixth outing. “I was on the podium and I looked down and I could see my dad and I could see one of the biggest smiles I have ever seen in my life on his face.”

This weekend he seeks to claim his sixth victory at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve to add to those of 2007, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2016, but conceded that rivals Ferrari, and not his defending champions team Mercedes, are the favourites.

“We have seen, obviously, that Ferrari are the quickest at the moment, so they’re the favourites,” he said.

“But we’re working very hard to rectify the issues we had at the last race and we hope that we can attack again this weekend.

“They’ve got some unique bits on the car that I think will work well for them this weekend, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take the fight to them.”

He added that he had been to the Mercedes factory for a debriefing after the team’s disappoint­ing showing at the Monaco Grand Prix, won by four-time champion German Sebastian Vettel for Ferrari, but without finding a solution to their problems with tyre performanc­e.

“We have definitely done some analysis, but we’ll find out whether or not there are things we can improve on this weekend,” he said.

“You push, or you drive slow, depending on the temperatur­e, and when it comes to doing your laps, sometimes they’re ready, or not — it’s difficult. It’s a kind of numb feeling.”

Vettel heads into the race today with a healthy 25-point lead at the top of the drivers’ standings.

Hamilton finished way down in seventh, but the race was dominated by suggestion­s that Ferrari had used tactics to ensure Vettel finished ahead of teammate Kimi Raikkonen.

After starting from 13th on the grid and struggling with his tyres all weekend, Hamilton did a decent job but admitted improvemen­ts are needed.

“One more race like this and we will be much further behind,” he said. “We still believe we can win this thing, 25 points is a long way away. Bit by bit we will try to chip away.”

The signs are promising for Mercedes, however, as Hamilton beat Vettel to the chequered flag last time out in Montreal. It’s also a track where he usually does well, having won five of the last 10.

Elsewhere, there is plenty of other interest. Fernando Alonso returns after the Indianapol­is 500 while for the first time in 11 years the locals will have a Canadian driver to cheer on in Williams driver Lance Stroll. Kimi Raikkonen vs Ferrari bosses Ferarri’s pit strategy at Monaco appeared to cost Raikkonen victory and it will be interestin­g to see how he responds in Canada.

The Finn lost the lead of the race during the pit stops to Vettel, who with clean air in front of him was then able to lap faster and win the race, with Raikkonen finishing second.

The 37-year-old’s disappoint­ment and frustratio­n at missing out on his first Ferrari victory since 2009 could act as motivation today.

Ferrari have not won in Montreal since 2004 but Raikkonen has claimed victory here before and knows what it takes to be successful on this track. Sebastian Vettel vs Lewis Hamilton Hamilton will be aiming for his sixth win in Canada, which would put him just one behind Michael Schumacher in the list of all-time Canadian Grand Prix winners.

If Hamilton and his team can fix the tyre issues that so affected them in Monaco, where the team struggled for grip all weekend, then he will be in with a shot on a track where he has enjoyed great success.

Vettel, however, will go into the race in relaxed mood with a healthy lead, and is the man to beat at present. — bleacherre­port.com and btsport.com and AFP

We still believe we can win this thing, 25 points is a long way away. We will try to chip away

 ?? Picture: AFP ?? Formula One’s Charles Hamelin, Carlos Sainz, Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo, Daniil Kvyat and Sebastien Toutant hit the white waters on the Saint Lawrence River near Montreal this week ahead of today’s Canadian Grand Prix Men Of Action
Picture: AFP Formula One’s Charles Hamelin, Carlos Sainz, Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo, Daniil Kvyat and Sebastien Toutant hit the white waters on the Saint Lawrence River near Montreal this week ahead of today’s Canadian Grand Prix Men Of Action

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from South Africa