World champion only seventh at Monza after penalty for entering closed pit lane; But Hamilton thrilled for new F1 winner Gasly: "It's such fantastic to see him recover and grow"
Sunday 6 September 2020 22:06, UK
Lewis Hamilton took the blame for the race-losing penalty in the Italian GP, but nonetheless hailed Pierre Gasly's stunning surprise victory success, remarking that the Frenchman was "dropped from the top team and now he's beat the top team".
After poor starts to the race for title rivals Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas, Hamilton dominantly pulled away from McLaren's Carlos Sainz up front and appeared on course for a comfortable 90th career win to further stretch his large championship advantage.
But Hamilton's race - and the destination of the Monza victory - turned around suddenly after the Safety Car was called when Kevin Magnussen's Haas broke down by the side of the pit-lane entry.
Hamilton headed for the pits as is often customary under caution periods - but, due to the positioning of the stricken Haas car, race control had closed the service road, with red crosses displaying on marker boards on the outside of the final corner, the Parabolica, to signify that drivers should not enter.
Hamilton and Alfa Romeo's Antonio Giovinazzi were the two drivers who still pitted and were immediately put under investigation by the stewards.
The race was soon suspended after Charles Leclerc crashed heavily and, during the stoppage, Hamilton went to see the stewards. But a 10-second stop-and-go penalty was soon confirmed for the race leader, with Hamilton serving it at the end of the first lap after the Grand Prix restarted.
"My race wasn't meant to be today, it was a bit unfortunate," he told Sky Sports F1. "Honestly, I didn't see those boards so I take responsibility for that.
"It's something I will learn from."
Hamilton dropped to the back of the field but raced back with typical gusto to seventh place, also taking the bonus point for the race's fastest lap. With Bottas only fifth, and Verstappen retiring, Hamilton's title lead remains at 47 points.
Although his race ultimately fell away unexpectedly, F1's six-time champion was quick to offer warm praise to F1's newest and most unexpected race winner.
Briefly pausing his interview to congratulate Gasly as the Frenchman arrived behind him in the post-race media pen, Hamilton said: "I need to say a huge congratulations for Pierre because that's a fantastic result for him.
"I've obviously seen what he's been through from being dropped from the top team [Red Bull] and now he's beat the top team.
"It's such fantastic to see him recover and to generally see him grow. I am genuinely really happy for him."
Gasly's breakthrough victory comes just 13 months after he was demoted back down to AlphaTauri after a troubled 12-race stint at Red Bull when he struggled in Max Verstappen's shadow.
The action-packed second half of the Mercedes driver's race could not have contrasted more sharply with the serenity of the first, as Hamilton was forced to try and salvage a points result from an initially cut-adrift back of the field position.
"That was a long pit stop, 26 seconds I had to catch up, but nevertheless once I finally caught everybody I enjoyed that bit of a battle," added the Briton.
"To get seventh and fastest lap is some good points considering I definitely didn't think that was possible from 26 seconds behind the last car. So I will definitely take it and grateful Max didn't score any points. So not a huge loss today."
