No euphoria
The Hungarian GP, scheduled for this weekend, represents the last event on the Circus calendar before the long summer break. It is therefore natural that drivers are asked for a summary of what has been achieved in the first part of the championship and expectations for the second half of the season, which will kick off at the end of August with the Dutch Grand Prix. Even Lewis Hamilton could not escape this ritual question at the start-of-weekend press conference, which was held as always in the Ferrari hospitality.
Given the enormous difference in performance – positive – between this season and his first in red one might legitimately have expected an euphoric Hamilton and explicitly ambitious for the second part of 2026. Instead, despite the second place in the standings he currently occupies and having finally managed to break through by winning his first Ferrari victory last June 14 in Barcelona, the red #44 chose to keep his feet firmly on the ground.
Read more Minardi Jr., million-dollar lawsuit against Antonelli
Thinking about the present
“Am I thinking about the title for the second part of the season? I’m not thinking about the second part – Hamilton declared – I’m thinking about this weekend, one race at a time, and trying to figure out how to make the most of every weekend. I generally don’t think about what will happen ten races from now.”. Perhaps even more surprising was the answer to another question, regarding his ‘self-assessment’ regarding the first part of the season: “The first part? It went well. Perhaps slightly above average,” Lewis commented. Few words that show the Briton’s concentration but also his winning mentality: a single victory in red is not enough, and regardless of the title discussions – which still clearly favor Mercedes and Antonelli – Hamilton’s ambition for after the summer seems to be to increase his tally as much as possible.
Read more Hungarian GP 2026, FP1: green light at 13:30, Antonelli ‘in the pits’ – LIVE
