Lewis Hamilton names key Ferrari improvement which unlocked 'China form'

Lewis Hamilton felt a series of Ferrari improvements allowed him to unlock his comfort with the car not seen since China in the Emilia Romagna GP. 

Starting 12th at Imola, Hamilton ran long on the hard tyres at the start, was able to change tyres to the mediums under the Esteban Ocon virtual safety car.

He then pitted again for fresh hards under the Kimi Antonelli safety car, putting on a late charge to finish fourth, just 1.3s behind Oscar Piastri on the podium. 

Fourth is Hamilton's best grand prix result for Ferrari, and his best result since winning the Sprint in China - a level of performance he has since been unable to access again.

However, at Imola, Hamilton felt he was able to.

"There are tons of positives," a buoyed Hamilton told media including RacingNews365. 

"The strategy was fantastic, they made great calls, and didn't put a foot wrong, the car felt like China when I was really aligned with the car - and then the only other time is today, like I really felt that synergy. 

"The set-up was great, and we made an improvement in the race and unlocked our potential. If we had qualified higher, we would have been fighting for a podium, which I just did not think was possible. 

"The whole thing was entertaining, obviously the beginning wasn't spectacular, but got a decent start and was squeezed and lost ground to the Mercedes [of Kimi Antonelli]. 

"I was just sitting there waiting, and I had to be patient, but the strategy started to pan out, and the car came alive on the medium tyres.

"I've always loved when you are fighting from further back and coming through, that is how I started off as a kid at Rye House. 

"It is such a better feeling than starting and finishing first, but definitely, it was a mega race and there are so many positives to take from it."