There was plenty for Ferrari to worry about after last weekend's European Grand Prix in Valencia. The second successive engine failure leading to Raikkonen's retirement, the mistake in the pits and the injured crew member, and Lewis Hamilton's words afterwords.
I almost had to pinch myself. Was this really Lewis Hamilton talking about being happy with second place and playing the long game? I had Lewis down as a Gilles Villeneuve type. The kind of guy who wants to win every race, and if they all add up to the world championship as well, then great.
He's as instinctive a driver as you will see. The speed and the flair, the ability to pass people where other drivers wouldn't even think about it, the natural feel for grip that makes him so formidable in the wet. When you marry all that to a front-running car and tremendous self belief it all adds up to a driver who expects to win.
![]() Lewis Hamilton © LAT |
Perhaps it was just talk. The Ferrari seemed to have the legs of the McLaren in Valencia - just - and probably there was nothing more that Lewis could have done about it. He was also having to cope with neck spasms that had required pain-killing injections.