Race driver Tim Coronel criticises Lewis Hamilton and believes he is distracted by issues such as the jewellery ban – blame shifted to team?
Is Lewis Hamilton too distracted by other issues? That’s what racing driver Tim Coronel, a popular Formula 1 pundit in the Netherlands, says. Fans in Oranje can celebrate Max Verstappen’s successes again this year, while his world championship rival from last year is having a difficult time.
Hamilton only finished on the podium at the season opener in Bahrain and has the inside track against new teammate George Russell. The seven-time world champion is 1:4 in the race duels, especially in Jeddah and Imola.
Hamilton also lost the duel against Russell in Miami, even if the latter was helped by a lucky safety car phase. But what struck Coronel most in this race was the way both drivers handled their team.
While Russell was confident of his chance with the safety car, Hamilton deferred strategic responsibility to his team, noting afterwards that it had not turned out happily for him in Miami.
“I can see Hamilton is looking for a lot of excuses”. “But it’s hard right now because he keeps getting punched in the nose by his teammate Russell. Then you get into a bad momentum, which we’re seeing with Hamilton right now. “
Russell, meanwhile, took advantage of the opportunities presented to him, finishing in the top five in every race so far this season. “He’s feeling good and he’s creating chances. We saw that with [Michael] Schumacher as well, who really thought together with his team,” Coronel said.
“Hamilton, on the other hand, is playing the ball to Mercedes. But as a driver you also have to think along,” says the Dutchman, who makes a clear judgement: “Hamilton is too busy with his piercings, jewellery and other nonsense instead of the real race. “
