Hamilton Lewis Says Ferrari Simulator Skip Is The Way Forward After Fifth
hamilton lewis said skipping Ferrari's simulator was “the way forward” after he qualified fifth for Canadian Grand Prix Sprint Qualifying in Montreal. The Ferrari driver called it his best qualifying session in some time and linked the step to feeling more comfortable in the car.
Hamilton Lewis and Ferrari
Hamilton said the session was “probably the best qualifying session we've had for some time,” and added, “the fact that I didn't do the sim” made it “the best I've felt all year.” He also said, “I found that so much more beneficial in terms of, one, I was able to just focus on training and not be distracted.”
He went further and said he chose a setup Ferrari had never used before. “And I chose a setup that we've never used before and it's transformed the car for me, so I hope that bodes well for the rest of the weekend,” he said.
Charles Leclerc in Montreal
The fifth-place run carried extra weight because Hamilton beat Charles Leclerc in a competitive session on track for the first time since the second round in China. That came after Hamilton had been outperformed by his team-mate in the last two races in Japan and Miami.
Hamilton and his engineers made subtle changes going into qualifying, and he said the three-week gap since the previous race gave Ferrari time to sift through the data and understand the car. He described SQ1 and SQ2 as looking good before saying he did not know why the others were able to “turn up a little bit more” late in the session.
Montreal Weekend Targets
Ferrari arrived in Canada without upgrades, while Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull brought new parts for the weekend. Hamilton still has history at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, where he took his maiden pole position and victory in 2007.
The Sprint was scheduled for 5pm on Saturday, with build-up from 4pm, and Grand Prix Qualifying was set for 9pm. After a mistake on his last run left him fifth, Hamilton now has one session’s evidence that the no-simulator approach and the new setup can carry over beyond Sprint Qualifying.
“But I'm just happy to be there in the fight. I was having so much fun out there. And, also, the fact that I didn't do the sim, and it was the best I've felt all year, so I think that's the way forward for me,” he said.
