Lewis Hamilton reflects on a very promising sessions with Ferrari during FP as he laments the 5-place grid penalty

Lewis Hamilton shared his thoughts on his outing during the free practice session of the Italian Grand Prix. The British driver detailed how pleased he was with his outing at the Monza circuit.

Hamilton, who had entered the Italian Grand Prix event on the back of a double DNF for the Scuderia Ferrari team in Zandvoort, clocked the fastest time during FP1 in what was a front row lockout for the Maranello-based outfit. The seven-time world champion, however, endured a much subdued outing during the second session of Friday, mustering only a fifth place through FP2.

Sharing his thoughts on the Sky Sports broadcast following the conclusion of the session, Lewis Hamilton detailed how pleased he was with the sessions throughout the day. He also noted how he would prefer the difficulty he endured to have surfaced during the FP2 session as against the final practice.

“Yeah, as I said, FP1 was really really strong, and FP2 was definitely much more of a struggle, but it’s better to have that in FP2 and learn from that rather than FP3. Lots of positives to take from today, we’ll do some work overnight, and I hope that tomorrow we can be better.”

Further speaking about his grid penalty and the challenges of overtaking in Monza, Lewis Hamilton continued:

“I think it’s very close with everyone in the Top 10, so it’ll be a challenge and it’s not easy to overtake, and I’ve obviously got that penalty, which is unfortunate but better have it now than next year, I guess.”

Hamilton and the Ferrari team will have their sights set on recording an impressive outing in front of the Tifosi in Monza. The Italian outfit is yet to taste a race victory through the 2025 campaign so far.

Lewis Hamilton draws motivation from his grid penalty

Earlier, Lewis Hamilton weighed in on his grid penalty. The former Mercedes driver was handed a five-place penalty for the Monza race following an incident last time out at the Dutch Grand Prix.

The 40-year-old was adjudged not to have slowed down under double waved yellows during his lap to the grid at the race in the Dutch Dunes. The stewards, who opted to pass their verdict following the conclusion of the event would eventually hand the seven-time champion a five-place grid drop.

However, reacting to the sanction he received, Hamilton detailed how it further complicates what was shaping out to be a close qualifying session. The Ferrari driver, however, stressed how motivated he was for the weekend ahead. He said (via the BBC):

"It's going to be challenging this weekend. Qualifying is already so close between us all. Just getting into Q3 is tough; getting into the top five is very tough.

"And then on top of that, to be set back five places is not great when you're going into your first Monza GP with Ferrari. But it gives me more to fight for, and I'm very motivated to make up those places regardless."

Lewis Hamilton ranks among the most successful drivers around the Monza circuit in the history of Formula 1. He boasts five race wins around the iconic ‘Temple of Speed’. Hamilton will now aim to dig up from his experience and craft a strong performance to salvage what would be left of his weekend, starting with qualifying.