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Damon Hill thinks Charles Leclerc was ashamed to be losing to a 41-year-old Lewis Hamilton

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Damon Hill believes Charles Leclerc was demoralised seeing Lewis Hamilton outperform with Ferrari this season.

Leclerc winning the British Grand Prix came at just the right time for the Monegasque driver, who had been struggling with Ferrari this season.

Heading into the race on Sunday, Leclerc made a big change compared to Hamilton that he felt would give him an edge in the race.

How has the British Grand Prix changed your outlook on the F1 title race?

Pole position qualifier Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team celebrates in parc ferme during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain at Silverstone Circuit on July 04, 2026 in Northampton, England.
Photo by Bryn Lennon – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images

Whatever that change was, it seems to have paid off massively, as Leclerc managed to earn his first win of the season and force his way into the championship conversation.

This win allowed him to redeem himself, especially since Damon Hill believes that Charles Leclerc was embarrassed to see Lewis Hamilton get the better of him with Ferrari this season.

READ MORE: Ralf Schumacher tells Charles Leclerc to seek ‘mental coaching’ over Lewis Hamilton deficit

Scuderia Ferrari HP crew celebrate Charles Leclerc finishing P1 and Lewis Hamilton finishing P3 at the British Grand Prix.
Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP via Getty Images

Damon Hill says Charles Leclerc needed British GP win after Lewis Hamilton’s ‘demoralising’ form

During an appearance on the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, Damon Hill spoke about Charles Leclerc’s massive win at the British Grand Prix.

Hill claims that the win came at the right time for Leclerc, who was being embarrassingly upstaged by Lewis Hamilton before he went and made adjustments to get the win.

“Can you imagine being beaten by someone who is 41 or 42 years old? You’re the young kid, and it’s your team. You’ve been there forever, and suddenly, this guy turns up and starts putting victories.

“It can be quite demoralising. But he worked hard. He said it himself. He went away and worked really hard, and he’s really pleased that he’s found what he needed to.

“So there is always something you can find as a driver now with the data you have and the team that you have behind you to help. You find that little edge, and it is only a little edge. We’re talking tiny fractions here and there.”

READ MORE: Alex Jacques suspects Charles Leclerc has lost his ‘greatest strength’ at Ferrari this year

The driver ratings for the British Grand Prix are locked in. What do you make of our scores?

POSDRIVERRTG
1Leclerc9
2Russell5
3Hamilton8
4Norris6
5Hadjar7
6Lawson8
7Lindblad8
8Bortoleto6
9Colapinto7
10Gasly7

Damon Hill claims Charles Leclerc’s British Grand Prix came as a huge surprise

Speaking further on the podcast, Hill suggested that Leclerc was far from an odds-on favourite to win the British Grand Prix.

“What were his odds?… I think they had to be close to at least 20:1. Okay, maybe 10:1. He was right out there. He was not a favourite to win this race.”

Whatever the real reason behind Leclerc’s struggles compared to Hamilton might have been, it appears Ferrari have figured out the issue at hand.

Despite Hamilton looking better than Leclerc at Silverstone early on, the final race on Sunday was a completely different story.

Leclerc didn’t just look more dominant compared to Hamilton, but also to the rest of the grid. Perhaps this could be the turning point for them this season.