Hamilton seeks to stretch Mercedes unbeaten run, unaided

Lewis Hamilton will seek to stretch his lead and extend Mercedes unbeaten run to 10 races with a victory unaided by fortune at this weekend's French Grand Prix.

The defending five-time drivers' champion, a lucky winner in Canada two weeks ago when Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel was controversially penalised, won at the remote sun-baked Le Castellet track last year and is hunting his sixth win this year and the 79th of his career.

If he, or team-mate Valtteri Bottas, succeeds, it will mean the Silver Arrows have won all eight contests this year after finishing last season with two triumphs.

But after a testing weekend in Montreal, where four-time champion Vettel claimed pole position and finished the race first 'on the road', Hamilton and Mercedes are wary of any signs of complacency.

Team chief Toto Wolff admitted: "Canada was something of a wake-up call for us. "After a run of very good reliability over the opening six races, we experienced a number of problems almost all of which were of our own making."
"But unlike Canada, the corner characteristics are spread across a range of speeds, which should play to our advantage. We're looking forward to the chance to put a few things right again."
"We will have a few small evolutions," said team chief Mattia Binotto. "It won't be a solution to our problems, but the feedback will be important for the future."