LEWIS HAMILTON was disappointed, but determined on Friday evening after a difficult day of practice at the Spanish Grand Prix, during which former team-mate Nico Rosberg suggested his age may be catching up with the seven-time world champion.
Hamilton, who joined Ferrari this year, wound up 11th after second free practice and described his car as “not driveable”, a description moderated by team boss Fred Vasseur who admitted “the comments on the radio were a bit extreme”.
As the 40-year-old Briton battled to drive his capricious car around the Circuit de Catalunha, Rosberg, who beat him to win the world title in 2016, told SkyF1 that age was likely to be a factor in his struggles this year.
“Even if he’s the greatest of all time, at some point you are going to get a little bit slower and that’s age related,“ said Rosberg.
“And when you are 40, it’s going to happen sooner rather than later.”
Leclerc, Hamilton’s Ferrari team-mate was sixth and said he was pleasantly surprised by his car’s performance and potential.
Hamilton maintained a stoical expression.
Asked about his day, he said: “Not fun. It’s a beautiful place, the weather has been amazing, but no, not a good day.”
He added that he did not feel he was using his experience to motivate the team.
“I wouldn’t say that. You just keep your head down and keep working away. You just don’t give up. You keep going, you keep pushing.”
Rosberg had some sympathy for Hamilton.
“If we can come to the worst car, it’s the Ferrari,“ he said.
“Oh my goodness! Poor Lewis Hamilton. That car is a handful.
“I mean the rear is just so loose and snappy so even on the entry, Lewis had to fully steer out again to avoid binning. So, I really feel for him at the moment.”
Hamilton, who has won the Spanish race a record six times, on Thursday went to some length to end speculation claiming he had a difficult working relationship with his race engineer Riccardo Adami.
“There is a lot of speculation and most of it is BS,“ he told reporters.
“We have a great relationship. He is amazing to work with. He is a great guy, working so hard, as we both are. It is all noise and we are ignoring it.”
