Driver-turned-television pundit
Mark Blundell reckons that
Lewis Hamilton needs to refocus ahead of next weekend's British Grand Prix, or face an uphill challenge in the world championship.
Speaking in the wake of Hamilton's second race without points, in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours, Blundell suggested that the McLaren man needed to take back control of his season and not let outside factors detract from the job in hand.
Hamilton yesterday hit back at sections of the media for misrepresenting his life away from
Formula One - amid claims of him dating a string of beauties and enjoying the high-life that the sport has afforded him - but Blundell insists that the Briton should not let interest in his private affairs get the better of him.
"He has let the media side of things get to him," the former Ligier,
McLaren, Brabham and Tyrrell driver wrote in an article for Britain's
Daily Telegraph newspaper, "The key word for Lewis right now is control - controlling the environment inside the cockpit and his feelings and emotions outside it.
"The moment has come for Lewis to press the reset button. The thing [he] does best is driving a racing car. Everything needs to follow from that. At the moment, he seems a little derailed. He needs to get back on track."
After winning in Monaco, Hamilton has seen the lead of the world championship slip away on the back of two non-scores, both resulting from a uncharacteristic error in the pit-lane at the Canadian Grand Prix. Clashing with title rival
Kimi Raikkonen, after not spotting the red stop light controlling their re-entry to the track, not only eliminated both men in Montreal, but also handed Hamilton a ten-place penalty for France, which he compounded with a second error at Magny-Cours on Sunday. The field now heads for Hamilton's home race, at
Silverstone next weekend, where there will be even greater calls on his time away from the track.
