Hamilton wants to string together victories to catch up with Rosberg

Big loser of the Canadian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was pushed back to 22 points behind the championship leader, his teammate Nico Rosberg, just under one race win (25 points). This was due to a retirement following brake problems, which were themselves caused by an MGU-K issue that had caused the Silver Arrows to lose their lead.

The Briton finds himself in the same situation as after the inaugural Australian Grand Prix, where he had to retire after a few laps, losing 25 points to Rosberg right from the start. But the 2008 world champion is determined: “There is still a long way to go. I have come back and I will come back again,” he told the BBC.

For *Autosport*, he clarified his thoughts, stating that it is through victories and not relying on retirements that he will make a comeback: « I have to try to come back, and I really don’t want one of the two cars not to finish. Hopefully, we won’t have another problem with either car, which would mean I’d have even more work to make up for lost ground. »

« It will probably take four more victories, and I will do what I can to get them, » he indicates. After his retirement in Melbourne, Lewis Hamilton had to string together four consecutive wins, between Malaysia and Spain, to take the lead in the championship from Nico Rosberg, who, at the same time, finished in second position in each victory of the other Mercedes.

Hamilton turns towards the future with eagerness; he makes the British Grand Prix a major goal: « We have good circuits coming up, and the goal for me is to ensure I win at Silverstone. » The last Briton to win the race at Silverstone is Lewis Hamilton himself, in his title year, 2008, during a race contested on a wet track.

Surprisingly, the retirement in Montreal leaves him with a less bitter taste than the Monaco Grand Prix: « In fact, it’s less frustrating than the last race, believe it or not. I don’t know why. It’s just less frustrating. I wasn’t particularly affected except that I found it hard to believe that my car stopped and not the other one, but that’s how it is. Two retirements don’t help, but the season is still very long. »

Hamilton is the fastest and the hungriest.

For David Coulthard, former Williams, McLaren, and Red Bull driver and premium consultant for the BBC, the driver with number 44 has reasons to hope: « [Hamilton] is now 22 points behind Rosberg. It’s not good for him, obviously, but there are two things with which he can reassure himself. »

« One is that there are double points in the last race, » he recalls. Indeed, for the first time, the last race of the 2014 season will have double points, with the victory awarding 50 points. « The other is that, even if Rosberg leads the championship, it is fair to say that the strongest driver in the first seven races has been Hamilton. If the team does not blame him for causing the problems in Melbourne and Montreal — and they don’t — then we must conclude that he has done nothing wrong. »

Coulthard went on: « Hamilton was the fastest, the hungriest, so he just needs to maintain that and keep chipping away. »