Lewis Hamilton will be confident of challenging for victory at the British GP, says his former team-mate Jenson Button | F1 News

Lewis Hamilton will come into this weekend’s British Grand Prix confident he can win on home soil, according to his former team-mate Jenson Button.

The seven-time world champion has enjoyed a resurgence in the early stages of the 2026 Formula 1 season, kicking off a potential title push with his maiden grand prix win for Ferrari in Barcelona earlier this month.

Hamilton was frustrated during Sunday’s Austrian Grand Prix as a lack of performance dropped him from third to fifth on the grid, but Sky Sports F1 Pundit Button does not expect to dash his hopes of a record-extending 10th win at Silverstone.

“Lewis is definitely coming in with confidence,” said Button, the 2009 world champion Sky Sports News. “It didn’t go his way in the last race, but it didn’t have him. The package just wasn’t there.

“Compare him to his team-mate Charles Leclerc, who is very well-respected, and Lewis came out on top again. He could have kept those tires much better at the start of the race, the pace when his team-mates didn’t.

“He won’t be happy with the result, but he’ll know he got the most out of it. And that’s the old Lewis we knew, he’s maximizing everything, and it’s really good to see that.

“He’ll be confident coming home at a slightly lower temperature. Ferrari’s are pretty good in terms of aero. Silverstone is primarily a power circuit, but you still have to carry speed through the corners.

“I think I’ll come away confident that he’s got a chance to win.”

Button spent three seasons as Hamilton’s teammate at McLaren from 2010 to 2012 and had the chance to see first-hand what made the 41-year-old successful around his home circuit.

“He’s very good at driving a car with that setup on the nose,” Button added.

“Around Silverstone you need, you need to be able to carry speed through the high-speed parts of the track, but also be able to handle changes of direction. That’s a big part of it.

“I think that’s where his strength is. My comparison to him is that he can drive a car on the nose, which is the fastest car out there.”

Russell’s win sets up ‘epic’ battle with Antonelli

Hamilton’s former Mercedes team-mate George Russell restored his own title hopes with victory in Austria.

It was Russell’s first win since the opening round of the season in Australia, when his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli won five races as title favorite instead of the Briton.

Button said: “It’s good to see George get his first win for a long time. It’s been a long time coming and I think it’s a big help for him mentally.

“Going to the British Grand Prix is ​​a confidence boost, which I like. We’ll have some very fast British drivers at the front of the field who will be fighting for the podium.”

Despite Button’s excitement over Russell’s chances of maintaining his pace at Silverstone, he warned that Antonelli’s consistent pace would pose a threat.

“I think when you look at Kimi’s speed, just every race he’s been there,” Boughton said. “And in Austria he was less than two seconds from winning a race that didn’t really go his way.

“His pace is undeniable, but then it’s consistency, whether he can be consistent with putting laps together and fighting wheel-to-wheel.

“George is obviously the more experienced driver in that situation.

“It’s good for us as fans for the championship fight, that George got the win because it gives him confidence and it means that now it’s a proper fight between him and Kimi, especially at the British Grand Prix. I think it’s going to be a pretty epic weekend.”

Next up is the big one of the 2026 Formula 1 season, the Sprint Weekend at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix – races from Thursday to Sunday at 3pm with live coverage on Sky Sports F1 and Sky One. Stream Sky Sports now – no contract, cancel anytime