Under fire Vettel gets support from rival Hamilton

A beleaguered Sebastian Vettel received support from an unexpected source Monday after another dismal outing for Ferrari in an action-packed British Grand Prix.

Two weeks ahead of his home German Grand Prix, the under-pressure four-time world champion endured a race to forget as he slipped 100 points adrift of the victorious record-breaking Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes by finishing a distant 16th.

Another in his growing catalogue of errors, when he slammed into the rear of Max Verstappen's Red Bull and was forced to pit for a new nose, brought him a 10-second penalty and two points on his licence.

It was also the third consecutive race in which the 32-year-old German was beaten comprehensively by his team-mate Charles Leclerc, who came home third.

The 21-year-old Monegasque is now only three points behind him and many observers suggested that Ferrari will have to make him their main priority, instead of Vettel, in the title race.

Those critics, however, do not include five-time champion and long-time rival Hamilton whose record sixth Silverstone win thrilled a sold-out crowd of 141,000.

"He's had a difficult race today, but he's a four-time world champion," said Hamilton. "He will recover. He will redeem himself, if he feels he needs to, and he will come back stronger in the next race -- that's what great athletes do."
- Precocious talent -
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