Lewis Hamilton names the most ‘unbelievable’ part of Italian Grand Prix after superb Monza comeback

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Lewis Hamilton came back to sixth place in the Italian Grand Prix after being handed a grid penalty for a yellow flag infringement at the previous race.

The Ferrari driver initially qualified in fifth place and was not far off teammate Charles Leclerc, but with a five-place grid penalty, he was forced to start from 10th place on the grid.

Hamilton worked his way through the field, passing cars at the start of the race and then finding himself in the top six after the pit stops.

Discussing how his race panned out on Sky Sports F1 (3:50pm, 07/09), Hamilton outlined the most ‘unbelievable’ part of his comeback drive.

Lewis Hamilton praises Ferrari Tifosi during Italian Grand Prix comeback drive

It was the first Italian GP in front of the adoring Tifosi, who lined up the walls of Fiorano during pre-season to catch a first glimpse of Hamilton.

Although a podium eluded both Ferrari drivers, with Leclerc finishing in fourth place, Hamilton was grateful of the support from the fans as he came back from his grid penalty.

Hamilton: “I was really happy with the position I had into Turn 1 and into Turn 4, then after that I was overtaking. I got really close to George, we probably should’ve tried to undercut him at that point. But going on, I think that’s something we’ll discuss. Otherwise, after the penalty to get back to sixth, I’m really grateful. To be able to do a solid drive like that in front of the Tifosi, it’s unbelievable driving here in this car.”

Brooks: “Will you go up to the podium and see them?”

Hamilton: “I didn’t deserve to be on the podium today, but I’ll probably go out to see them [Tifosi].”

READ MORE: Max Verstappen dominates as McLaren use team orders with Lando Norris during Italian Grand Prix

Ferrari extends gap over Mercedes in Constructors Championship

A late penalty for Andrea Kimi Antonelli for “erratic driving” cost him a couple of positions and points at his home race, and also had an impact on the Constructors’ Championship battle.

Despite Ferrari’s double DNF at the Dutch GP, the consistency from Hamilton and Leclerc has enabled them to maintain the gap to Mercedes.

Their strong finish at Monza has put Ferrari 20 points ahead of Mercedes, with Red Bull having gained a bit of ground with Verstappen’s win and now 21 points behind the Silver Arrows.

Hamilton currently sits in sixth in the Drivers’ Championship behind Leclerc, who is 31 points behind George Russell.