He may have racked up his third non-score of the 2008
Formula 1 campaign following a distinctly scrappy performance at Magny-Cours this weekend, but
Lewis Hamilton has promised his fans he will be back on top form again in the British Grand Prix at
Silverstone in a fortnight's time – and back on the top step of the podium too.
The McLaren-Mercedes ace always knew his French Grand Prix weekend would be far from an easy one, having to contend with a ten-place grid demotion for his Montreal indiscretion two weeks earlier – and around a track where overtaking is acknowledged to be at something of a premium.
The Briton nevertheless enjoyed a spirited drive throughout the race's 70 laps, battling energetically early on with the
Renault of
Nelsinho Piquet, before having to serve a drive-through penalty for having been deemed to have gained an advantage when he ran briefly off-piste whilst passing
Scuderia Toro Rosso's
Sebastian Vettel on the opening lap.
That put the erstwhile world championship leader down to the rear of the pack, and though he would fight his way back through again, a number of lock-ups and half manoeuvres dulled his charge. The 23-year-old ultimately took the chequered flag just tenth, more than ten seconds shy of the points and with a fastest lap some three tenths of a second off team-mate
Heikki Kovalainen's best effort.
Despite paying a heavy price for his Canadian misdemeanour, however – with two failures to score in as many races dropping him down to fourth spot in the title chase – Hamilton insisted everything was still to play for.
“My drive-through penalty was an extremely close call,” the Stevenage-born ace reckoned afterwards. “I felt I'd got past Vettel fairly and was ahead going into the corner, but I was on the outside and couldn't turn-in in case we both crashed, then I lost the back-end and drove over the kerb.
