Ouch! Hamilton's Misfortune on Four Wheels Meets Audacious Groundhog
Racing champion Lewis Hamilton drives over a groundhog
Facebook Twitter Whatsapp E-Mail Print Copy Link Rough day for Lewis Hamilton - and one unlucky groundhog. The Formula 1 champion ran over one of these critters, causing a heap of trouble. Earlier, a bash-up left both competitors frowning.
Lewis Hamilton's luck ran thin at the Canadian Grand Prix. His Ferrari faltered mid-race, the culprit being a furry intruder. The unlikely love-hate relationship between the F1 champ and animals reared its head.
"I'm told I squished a groundhog," Hamilton lamented after the race on Sky. "It's heartbreaking, I adore animals. That's gut-wrenching, I've never seen one here before."
Collisions with groundhogs aren't a rarity at the Montreal track, the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Nestled on a green island in the St. Lawrence River, these burrowing animals are as much a part of the cityscape as the racetrack itself. Calm and collected, they sit pretty year after year, watching cars zoom past at over 300 km/h. Hamilton's Ferrari took a toll on one such resident.
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Hamilton's SF25 took a beating, with the groundhog incident leaving a gaping hole in the car's floor and the loss of vanes. The missile strike forced the record-chaser to lose about 20 points of downforce, equating to around half a second each lap. A top-six spot eluded him in the end.
Hamilton, still searching for redemption in his debut season at Ferrari, seems unimpressed. "We desperately need an upgrade - a bunch of changes are necessary for us to be competitive," he admitted, citing a silence on the development front at Ferrari. "Something is coming next week, but I don't expect it to make much difference." Hamilton's first year in the red seems destined to be a challenging one, he conceded.
Lando Norris drew the most attention in Canada when he crashed violently into Oscar Piastri just before the end. "That's my fault, sorry team. That was a boneheaded move of mine," Norris radioed to his McLaren squad, voice heavy with regret. Teammate Lance Stroll ended up finishing fourth, but stood in the pit lane after the race with a drained countenance. The long-anticipated major catastrophe at McLaren finally struck in Montreal.
Source: ntv.de, dbe/sid
Additional Insights:
- The collision resulted in Hamilton losing significant performance, presumably around half a second per lap. The damage had lasting effects, resulting in a sixth-place finish.
- Hamilton has failed to secure a podium position in the first 10 races of the season, creating an unwanted record.
- The incident drew attention to the potential risks wildlife face when entering racetracks. While measures to mitigate such incidents have been taken in the past, it brings the conversation about wildlife management strategies back into focus.
Lewis Hamilton's sports misfortune at the Canadian Grand Prix extended beyond the race track, as he collided with a groundhog during the event, causing significant damage to his Formula 1 car. This incident, rarely seen at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, resulted in a loss of about 20 points of downforce, equating to around half a second each lap, impacting Hamilton's race performance.
