'I always love races like that' - Hamilton enthused by Spa fightback

Lewis Hamilton says he "always loves races like that" after ending his troubled Belgian Grand Prix Sprint weekend on a brighter note by charging back into the points in Sunday's wet-dry race.

Hamilton had endured a weekend to forget at Spa-Francorchamps up to Sunday's rain-affected running.

He suffered two first-round qualifying exits which had left him starting near the back of the field for both Saturday's Sprint - where he went on to finish 15th - and Sunday's main race.

• Belgian GP race result | F1 championship standings
• F1 2025 schedule | F1 championship standings
• Got Sky? Watch F1 races LIVE on your phone! 📱
• Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺

But after Ferrari had taken his car out of parc ferme, fitting a new power unit, ahead of a race that had been expected to be hit by wet weather, Hamilton's weekend belatedly came alive from 18th in the starting order

Once racing action got under way following an 80-minute red flag, Hamilton overtook five drivers - Lance Stroll, Carlos Sainz, Franco Colapinto, Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly - in as many laps in the race's wettest conditions before being first to put for slick tyres at the end of lap 11 as the track dried.

That early gamble paid handsome dividends as, once other drivers ahead of him pitted for slicks themselves on subsequent laps, Hamilton had gained another six places and ran seventh behind Williams' Alex Albon.

And although that is where he stayed over the remaining 33 laps with no way past the Williams, Hamilton's early charge helped win him the fans' driver of the day award.

He told Sky Sports F1: "I always love races like that when you're challenged and having to make your way through the field.

"That's how my life started in racing. We had not such a great go-kart and started at the back, so it was reminiscent of that.

"Great work by the team. Disappointed to have had not such a great weekend, definitely one to forget. But at least I've still got some points, we outscored Mercedes collectively."

Hamilton's struggles up to Sunday came on a weekend Ferrari had brought a long-awaited rear suspension upgrade to their car - and in which Charles Leclerc finished fourth in the Sprint and then third ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen in the Grand Prix.

Hamilton, who is still awaiting the first Grand Prix podium of his Ferrari career after 13 starts, said: "I can't always get it right. There are lots of factors that contributed to Friday, Saturday was, again, some factors, but ultimately me.

"Then, I recovered a bit today. A big thank you to the team, I will try and come back stronger next week.

"I think I know the car a lot better now with all the changes we made, so I felt a lot more comfortable today."

'Super job!' - Rosberg's verdict on Hamilton's recovery

Sky Sports F1's Nico Rosberg, Hamilton's former team-mate and title rival at Mercedes:

"He made up six positions from 13th to seventh, that's awesome - by calling it himself. Super job!

"Ferrari will be pleased Mercedes struggled because if they keep up their form, that helps a lot in the Constructors' Championship a lot.

"I guess they will be generally quite positive. Nevertheless, they are still 20 seconds off McLaren which is a big chunk."

F1 immediately heads to the Hungarian Grand Prix for the final race before the sport's summer break, watch live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime