Lewis Hamilton expressed his disappointment after a frustrating qualifying session for the Hungarian Grand Prix, labeling himself as “useless” and suggesting that Ferrari may need to consider a driver change. Hamilton, who failed to make it into the top 10 and will start 12th on the grid, contrasted sharply with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who secured pole position for the team’s first Grand Prix pole of the season.
Despite showing promise in practice sessions, Hamilton struggled with car balance issues during qualifying, which he had previously flagged. In a candid interview with Sky Sports, Hamilton took full responsibility for his performance, admitting, “It’s just me, every time. I’m useless, absolutely useless. The team has no problem – the other car is on pole. They probably need to change driver.”
In contrast, Leclerc, who had initially viewed the Hungaroring as his worst circuit of the season, delivered an exceptional qualifying lap to clinch pole position, outpacing the dominant McLaren cars driven by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Leclerc’s joy was evident as he laughed on the radio upon hearing the news of his pole position, expressing his surprise and happiness at the unexpected achievement.
Piastri’s strong performance against Norris in qualifying highlighted the intense competition within the McLaren team. With Piastri securing a front-row spot alongside Leclerc, Norris faces a challenging task of overtaking his teammate in the race to avoid losing ground in the championship standings.
Looking ahead, Piastri aims to extend his 16-point lead over Norris in the upcoming race in Budapest before the F1 season goes on a break until the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August. Meanwhile, George Russell’s impressive qualifying performance positioned him fourth on the grid alongside Norris, with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso leading teammate Lance Stroll into Sunday’s race, both showing significant improvements from their previous performance at Spa-Francorchamps.
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