Lewis Hamilton may not be putting the Buddha into Budapest this weekend but he could be tempted to seek divine assistance if luck goes against him in Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
British driver Lewis Hamilton needs a win to cut into Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg’s 14-point championship lead after 10 of the 19 races and Hungary offers the perfect opportunity.
Hamilton has won there four times in the last seven seasons, including the last two, and the Briton shares the record for victories at the slow and twisty Hungaroring with Michael Schumacher.
Rosberg’s best result at the circuit, outside Budapest, remains a fourth place with Williams in 2009.
However, Hamilton’s season has also been beset by bad luck, with two race retirements and problems such as the front brake disc failure in qualifying that led to him starting last weekend’s German Grand Prix from 20th on the grid.
“I’m going there (Hungary) to try and win,” he told reporters after finishing third at Hockenheim.
“I just hope that the car sticks together so I can go out and do the job... I’m not planning on starting from the back there,” he added with a laugh.
Hamilton, like most Formula One drivers, is a believer in the old adage that you make your own luck in motor racing and he said he would never pray for it.
But it would be nice if some of the bad stuff went away in the last grand prix before the three-week European summer shutdown.
“A clean weekend is what I’m looking for, to come away from there with some strong points going into the break, get some rest time and then head back into the last part of the season,” he said.
“Maybe I need to go and visit some Indians, go and visit the Buddha, rub the Buddha belly or whatever,” joked the Briton, with a big grin.
“Try all the different religions to see if I can get some luck.”
While Rosberg will be Hamilton’s main rival, with Mercedes having won nine of the 10 races so far, Hungary is more about aerodynamics and downforce than having the best engine.
That could put Red Bull more into the mix – although quadruple champion Sebastian Vettel has never won in Hungary despite finishing on the podium three times.
Williams – and particularly Finland’s Valtteri Bottas – have been the team pushing Mercedes hardest of late and the former champions are hoping for another good weekend.
Bottas has been second in the last two races, and third in the one before that, and Hungary has long been seen as a home race for Formula One’s Finnish drivers due to linguistic similarities and proximity.
“We know it’s not the best circuit for our car but we are working on getting more grip in the corners and we have some upgrades that should help as well,” said Bottas.
“A good few practice sessions should help us get the set-up right.
“There are always a few fans from Finland, it’s almost like a Finnish GP, so I hope to pay the fans back with a good result.”
Hungary also has happy memories for McLaren’s Jenson Button and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, who both took the first wins of their F1 careers at the circuit.
Button has won there twice, most recently in 2011, while Alonso’s sole victory was in 2003.
“The Hungaroring is a great track. Everybody thinks of it as a slow circuit, but, out the back, it’s got some pretty decent corners... the sequence of S-bends that make up Turns Eight to 11 are really satisfying to drive,” Button told reporters.
“Nonetheless, it’s still a circuit where you require lots of downforce and grip, and I think we are making positive steps in that direction.”
Statistics
• Lap distance: 4.381 kilometres.
• Total distance: 306.630 kilometres, 70 laps.
• 2013 pole: Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes, one minute 19.388 seconds.
• 2013 winner: Lewis Hamilton.
• Lap record: 1:19.071, Michael Schumacher (Germany), Ferrari 2004.
• Start time: 14.00.
Hungary Grand Prix
• Hungary’s debut in 1986 made it the first F1 race in eastern Europe behind what was then the ‘Iron Curtain’. This weekend’s race is the 29th Hungarian GP.
• The track is the slowest permanent circuit on the calendar.
• Current F1 champion Sebastian Vettel, of Red Bull, has never won in Hungary.
• Zsolt Baumgartner is the only Hungarian driver to have competed in his home race (in 2003 and 2004). He scored a point in the 2004 US Grand Prix with Minardi.