Lewis Hamilton has raised questions about his future in Formula One after a disappointing performance at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he finished 12th. The seven-time world champion, who qualified 12th and described his car as 'absolutely useless' on Saturday, gave a downbeat assessment of his current situation.
When asked about his earlier comments suggesting Ferrari should find another driver, Hamilton said: 'When you have a feeling, you have a feeling. There is a lot going on in the background that is not great.' He did not elaborate on whether the issues were personal or related to his career with Ferrari.
Despite his frustrations, Hamilton insisted he still loves racing and the team. However, he was unusually unengaged after the race, giving monosyllabic answers and stating: 'I have got nothing else to say.' When asked if he would be driving at the next round in the Netherlands on 31 August, he replied: 'Hopefully I will be back, yeah.'
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur downplayed concerns, saying Hamilton is simply frustrated but not demotivated. 'He's demanding with the team, with the car, with the engineers, with the mechanics, with myself but first of all, he's very demanding with himself,' Vasseur said. 'I can understand the frustration from Lewis. This is normal. He will come back.'
Former Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff also expressed confidence in Hamilton's resilience. 'Lewis is wearing his heart on his sleeve. It was very raw what he said, he was hard on himself,' Wolff said. 'Lewis has unfinished business in Formula One. You ask me if he still has it? He definitely has it.'
