18/05/2025 18:25
Lewis Hamilton was left in awe of the "vintage" Ferrari tifosi
following his best-ever result for the team in the Emilia Romagna
Grand Prix, with fourth. Hamilton, who started 12th, was on the
hard tyres and running long but was tucked up behind Kimi
Antonelli's Mercedes for the first 34 laps. The Ferrari was able
to pit under both the virtual and then full safety cars for fresh
tyres, rejoining for the final Sprint in seventh. He quickly
dispatched George Russell, and then as Alex Albon and team-mate
Charles Leclerc squabbled, Hamilton was able to pass both to secure
his best result for the Scuderia in a grand prix. Fourth is also
his best grand prix result since second for Mercedes in the 2024
Las Vegas GP, as he finished 1.4s behind third-place Oscar
Piastri. Reflecting afterwards, Hamilton was buoyed by the
progress, as he also set the second-fastest race lap, only 0.277s
behind race-winner Max Verstappen. "I definitely did not expect us
to finish fourth today," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "I didn't
know where we would be given we were so far back, but the car felt
great, the team did a fantastic job with the strategy, they were
faultless. "We're slowly getting there, Riccardo [Adami] and I did
a fantastic job with the communication. I was calm, he was calm,
and the team was calm and executed the strategy. "Overall, it was
mega, I was hoping for some extra laps we lost under the safety
car, otherwise, we could have fought for the podium. "The
experience with the Tifosi, wow, it's been incredible. "It was
very special for me to see the sea of red, and I didn't know how
many people would turn up, and there was a huge Ferrari flag on the
exit of Tosa, so it felt vintage. "It felt like back in the day
when I was watching Michael [Schumacher] race here and seeing that
bond, it was great to experience, so I cherish that moment."
