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Lewis Hamilton was understandably ecstatic with his second-place result at the 2022 French Grand Prix, where he drove his milestone 300th race. Former Mercedes boss Norbert Haug claims that this type of reaction from the seven-time world champion reflects his true values as a racer.
Speaking to Sky Sports News about Lewis Hamilton at the French Grand Prix last weekend, Haug said:
“Anyone who has won 103 Formula 1 races and is so happy about second place is a real racer.”
Statistically, no F1 driver who has raced in over 300 races has ever gone on to win a Grand Prix after their 300th race. Sharing his thoughts on whether or not Hamilton has what it takes to break this curse with the support of Mercedes, Haug said:
“The prospects for Mercedes are not so bad. They are working consistently. Mercedes has made everything possible and has put itself in a position where you can take a step forward in the last ten races of the season.”
Given that Mercedes secured its best result of the 2022 season so far with a double podium finish at Circuit Paul Ricard last weekend, the prospects of the team taking its first win of the season sometime soon look pretty good.
Lewis Hamilton "gutted" for Leclerc at the French GP, predicts "smooth sailing" for Verstappen
For the third time this season, Charles Leclerc retired from a race he was comfortably leading at the French Grand Prix, drastically increasing the gap to championship leader Max Verstappen, who went on to win the race. Lewis Hamilton admitted that the Monegasque has done extremely well this season, although the growing gap in points could make it a relatively easy title win for Max Verstappen.
As reported by PlanetF1, the Briton said:
“I am gutted for Charles. He has been doing a great job. But it is not easy to have that performance and pace and be able to maintain it. I feel for the whole team because I know what that can feel like. It is a massive gap to Max so that is pretty smooth sailing for him in that space. But a lot can go wrong. I would just advise Ferrari to keep their heads down and continue to push.”
With 63 points separating the top two in the Driver Standings, Sergio Perez's mere seven-point deficit to the Ferrari driver is certainly something to look out for.
