Stewart: Lewis needs advice

Hamilton: Better structure required

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Sir Jackie Stewart believes a lack of communication within the McLaren team has led to Lewis Hamilton losing his grip on the drivers' championship.

Last year's world title runner-up suffered a 10-place grid penalty for the French GP when driving into the back of Kimi Raikkonen in the pit lane in Canada, resulting in Hamilton drawing a blank in successive races.

However, F1 legend Stewart believes better communication and the absence of a 'mind guru' at McLaren are the reasons behind Hamilton's recent mistakes.

"One of the biggest and most important elements is communication, and there is not enough of that going on," said Stewart, in his role as global ambassador for RBS at the Royal Automobile Club in London.

"Look at the accident in Montreal where there was so much publicity about Lewis, and with Nico (Rosberg), but not so much.

"How did that happen? Simply because there was so much distraction, so much interference going on in their young heads that they didn't hear the message 'the pit lane is closed, the red light is on'.

"Lewis had pulled away from the rest of the field and was enjoying a dream drive, whilst Nico, in a very competitive car, was possibly on for a podium.

"Then the safety car came out, and I don't care who you are, you are going to be upset and annoyed by that.

"When he came in (to the pits), he needed to be talked down mentally, and that is almost a psychiatrist's job. That is where a coach comes in.

"The man who should be talking to him is a man who specialises in good, clear communication, who knows when to a put an emphasis on a certain word.

"You have to bring the guy's head down so when he accelerates out of there, you tell him, 'The red light is on, do you understand?'.

"The blame Lewis and Nico received was all on their shoulders, and that was wrong because the team should have ensured the message was clear.

"Many of the teams today, they send the drivers to school on how to appear, how to be able to speak, and when to say this and that.

"But a racing team should be doing the same thing within their communication system. An engineer needs to be educated in that as much as the driver in my opinion.

"Teams might say they don't need that, but they do because that is there only contact with a driver whilst a number of things are going on."