Lewis Hamilton reveals Ferrari 'deep-dive' after 'unusual' mistake

Lewis Hamilton has confirmed it "was not a lack of concentration" on his part that wrecked his Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday after a Ferrari deep-dive unearthed some surprising factors.

Hamilton was a shock casualty at Zandvoort after crashing into a barrier at the circuit's iconic banked Turn 3, seemingly via a rare error in slightly damp conditions. He immediately turned on himself in dissecting the incident in its aftermath.

The incident was particularly galling for Hamilton, as he has stated that it was "definitely" the best he has felt in his Ferrari this year since joining the team after numerous problems over the past few months. 

In the build-up to this weekend's Italian Grand Prix, the seven-time F1 champion has revealed that over the past few days, Ferrari has conducted a thorough investigation into what unfolded on lap 23 of the race.

"Throughout the weekend, the approach we had was spot on," said Hamilton. "I felt it was one of our strongest, if not the strongest, and smoothest weekends up until Sunday.

"Sunday was disappointing and unfortunate, not the result we want. It was unusual for me because I don’t really make a lot of mistakes in races like that.

"The great thing is the team remained really positive, incredibly supportive. They lift your spirits. In the following days, they deep-dived into trying to understand what led to it.

"It wasn’t a lack of concentration. Several things contributed: for example, we had a downgraded upshift, which locked the rear wheels and spat the rear end out.

"Also, it was spitting, and so I was maybe 10 centimetres wider than the previous lap. So a combination of things.

"Either way, it’s not great, but I learn from it and move forward. If I apply that same approach this weekend and the following races, I feel positive about the direction we’re going."

Hamilton can only imagine

Unfortunately for Hamilton, due to an additional incident pre-race at Zandvoort, he starts his first race for Ferrari at Monza with a five-place grid penalty.

The FIA stewards determined Hamilton had not lifted sufficiently through a double-waved yellow flag zone, nor in taking to the pit lane, on one of his reconnaissance laps ahead of the grand prix.

RacingNews365 has learned that a discrepancy in telemetry data forced the stewards to investigate post-race, rather than apply an immediate hit, which in this case would have been a 10-second stop-go.

It naturally places Hamilton on the back foot going into such an iconic race for the Briton, and making a podium a long shot.

Hamilton can only imagine what it would be like to stand on the dias that overhangs the pit lane, wearing Ferrari red, and with the thousands of Tifosi beneath him.

"I’ve been on the podium plenty of times here, so I know what it’s like to be up there," he said.

"I’ve seen how it’s been for other Ferrari drivers, and anything I try to imagine will be far from what that feeling could be.

"But always, just coming here for anyone, no matter what team you drive for, it’s an incredible experience.

"Being in this park, at this historic circuit, and then seeing the whole Tifosi throughout the pit straight, but also when you do the parade lap, the fans are very close, so it feels like they’re right with you in the car. It’s pretty cool."