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Hamilton: no give-up

He had a dream start to his career and so there's a lot of expectation on Lewis, but you have to remember it is still only his second season.

Ron Dennis
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McLaren Mercedes have defended Lewis Hamilton after he failed to pick up points for the second successive race in France.

Speaking after Sunday's grand prix at Magny-Cours, in which the Briton finished 10th after being handed a drive through penalty, team CEO Martin Whitmarsh said that Hamilton would otherwise have earned "solid points".

Starting 13th on the grid - a position which mainly stemmed from the 10-place penalty he picked up for rear-ending Kimi Raikkonen in Canada - Hamilton was trying to make up places on the opening lap when he cut the Imola chicane passing Sebastian Vettel's Toro Rosso.

Handed the penalty several laps later when placed ninth, Hamilton subsequently dropped to the back of the field.

While the team have voiced their unhappiness with the stewards' decision, they have also had to contend with criticism of their number one driver.

Defiant

Asked by reporters if Hamilton was becoming error-prone, a defiant Whitmarsh insisted that the team was happy with his performances and expressed the hope that normal service would be resumed at the British Grand Prix on July 6th.

"I think Lewis always comes out fighting," he told The Times. "The reality is that with what he had this weekend he did a great job.

"If you look at the middle stint of the race, both our drivers on heavy fuel were really, really quick. There was no give-up.

"There was nothing wrong with Lewis's mentality. He was doing a great job in the car. There is great expectation that is placed upon him and that goes with the territory.

"Lewis will be determined at every race and will be extra determined at Silverstone."

Hamilton also received backing from team boss Ron Dennis, who said on Monday: "It's not a worry. It is motor-racing.

"He had a dream start to his career and so there's a lot of expectation on Lewis, but you have to remember it is still only his second season.

"There are many drivers who spend several years in Formula One before winning their first grand prix, so he is well ahead of the game."

Hamilton was behind the Renault of Nelson Piquet Jr., who finished seventh, prior to serving his penalty.

And, according to Whitmarsh, the punishment cost Hamilton a significant number of points.

"Without the extra drive-through I think he would have been into some solid points. I think it's easier to have the motivation and push and he would have been up in the thick of it," he said.

Title chances

Having led the Championship after his victory in last month's Monaco Grand Prix, Hamilton's recent lacklustre form has seen him slip to fourth in the standings.

As for his driver's title chances, Whitmarsh added: "We have had a nightmare start to the season and he is 10 points away from leading the Drivers' Championship.

"That can swing in one weekend, and that's the frame of mind you have to have when you go into this.

"He has got to believe that he can win in Britain and come out on equal points."