Lewis Hamilton reveals motivational fan message that has inspired him this weekend despite a 5-place grid penalty

Lewis Hamilton left qualifying at Monza encouraged rather than deflated. The seven-time champion qualified fifth for the Italian Grand Prix but will line up 10th after serving the five-place grid drop carried over from Zandvoort. What softened the blow was the roar of Ferrari’s home crowd and a quiet fan reminder that has stayed with him all week.

Ferrari arrived at Monza looking to reset after the double DNF in last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix. Engineers stripped back the approach, rolled out a low-drag rear wing built for the Temple of Speed, and urged both drivers to keep Friday clean. The car responded.

In FP1, Charles Leclerc and Hamilton locked out the top two, a morale boost for a team bruised by reliability failures. Both drivers stayed in the top five through FP2, and by FP3 the picture was clearer: on Mediums for most of the hour, Leclerc stayed second-quickest while Hamilton’s splits slotted him inside the top five.

Ferrari’s pace stirred optimism among the tifosi lining every grandstand. Last year, Leclerc delivered an improbable Monza victory; repeating that looked harder with Red Bull and McLaren stronger, yet practice suggested both red cars could fight for the front two rows.

Lewis Hamilton’s Q1 was measured. Both Ferrari drivers started with a fresh set of softs. Hamilton used two but parked the second run once his banker lap safely cleared the cut. Q2 paused briefly for gravel clean-up, then the Brit went out on an earlier scrubbed set before leaning on a fresh tire to cruise into Q3.

The fight tightened in the final segment. Both Ferrari drivers nailed their first flying laps; Leclerc even won provisional pole, the crowd erupting. Verstappen edged him moments later, then both McLarens found clean air and improved again. Hamilton’s banker held at fifth, Leclerc’s at fourth; neither could better them on the second attempt as track temps slipped.

After his qualifying run, Lewis Hamilton said:

"It’s huge, I want to see it. It’s the most uplifting. And also it’s like the messages that people sometimes give to you or the things that people say. One of the things that someone said to me this week that’s really I've been thinking of all week is, ‘Don’t forget who you are’. It was good to have that."

The Briton’s penalty shuffles him to P10. But he can lean on his past recoveries this season - P16 to P7 at Spa, P12 to P4 at Imola - to keep hope alive.

"The tifosi have made every day so special": Lewis Hamilton looks forward to first home race at Monza

Lewis Hamilton (44) qualifying for the Italian GP. Source: Getty

Ferrari's weekend so far has been a far cry from their twitchy Dutch GP weekend. Saturday (September 6) confirmed competitiveness but not supremacy. With the whole grid split by less than a second in FP3, the Prancing Horse warned that the key was an error-free lap. Lewis Hamilton kept his tidy, skipping the Turn 1 drama that tripped rivals.

Reflecting after Q3, Hamilton balanced realism and resolve (via F1):

"It’s been a positive weekend overall and, without the penalty, today’s result would have been satisfying. The team has worked tirelessly and the tifosi have made every day so special with their energy, which has been pushing me on even more... We’ll work hard tonight and hopefully deliver a result that makes the tifosi proud."

Charles Leclerc, winner here in 2024, starts fourth with clear air to McLarens and Max Verstappen. Five podiums already this year make him the tifosi’s proven hope. Hamilton’s first season in red remains heavier. 15 races in, he has no podiums, trails Leclerc 12-4 in qualifying and 11-2 in race finishes. Only the Chinese GP sprint win glitters in an otherwise lengthy adjustment.

With Verstappen P1 and McLarens P2-P3, the podium chase is steeper for Leclerc, steeper still for Lewis Hamilton. But history tempers doubt. Clean launch, smart stops, maybe a safety car swing, and Ferrari could still send two cars toward the rostrum.