Hamilton Defends Ferrari Move, Calls Red Bull's Lawson Decision 'Pretty Harsh'

Lewis Hamilton has defended his move to Ferrari, saying he never expected to win immediately, and has criticized Red Bull's decision to drop Liam Lawson.

Lewis Hamilton has dismissed claims that he has lost faith in Ferrari, calling such suggestions “complete rubbish.” The seven-time world champion is looking to bounce back from his disqualification at the Chinese Grand Prix, and is focused on achieving a strong result at this weekend's Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka.

Hamilton has experienced a rollercoaster ride over his first two race weekends with Ferrari. He finished 10th in Australia, but then secured his maiden victory in Scuderia red at the sprint race in Shanghai. However, his joy was short-lived, as he and teammate Charles Leclerc were both disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix due to separate technical infringements.

Despite the setback, Hamilton remains optimistic and has expressed his unwavering faith in the Ferrari team. “I didn't feel any frustration” over the outcome in Shanghai, Hamilton told reporters. When asked about claims that he was losing faith in Ferrari, Hamilton was emphatic in his response. “I saw someone said whether I'm losing faith in the team, which is complete rubbish,” he said. “I have absolute 100 per cent faith in this team.”

Lewis Hamilton believes that expectations surrounding his move from Mercedes to Ferrari were unrealistic, fueled by a “huge amount of hype.” Hamilton acknowledged that some people may have expected him to win immediately, but he never shared that expectation. “I don't know if everyone was expecting us to be winning from race one and winning a championship in our first year,” Hamilton said. “That wasn't my expectation. I know that I'm coming into a new culture, a new team and it's going to take time.”

Hamilton also shared his thoughts on Red Bull's decision to replace Liam Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda after just two races. While he wasn't surprised by the move, Hamilton felt that it was a harsh decision, particularly given Lawson's young age. “I'm not surprised, but I think it's pretty harsh,” Hamilton said.

Lewis Hamilton's reaction to Red Bull's driver swap. pic.twitter.com/cyKhRsRIXz

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As one of the elder statesmen of Formula 1, Hamilton expressed sympathy for the 23-year-old Lawson, who faces immense pressure as a young driver. “I think there's naturally a lot of pressure on youngsters coming in,” Hamilton said. “There's no way you can get fully on top of a car which is known to be not the easiest car to necessarily drive. Just to give him two races was pretty harsh.”