Hamilton untroubled by spin

Lewis Hamilton shrugged off his latest spin into the gravel.

McLaren star Hamilton was involved in a 170mph smash in qualifying at the European Grand Prix at the Nurburging 13 days ago.

The 22-year-old Briton escaped uninjured and was declared fit to race, only to slide off in horrendous wet conditions at the start.

On that occasion he was given a helping hand as he kept his engine running and was lifted back onto the circuit by a crane.

However, Hamilton could only finish ninth, ending his remarkable run of nine successive podiums to start his rookie season.

This time around, Hamilton stalled after spinning into the gravel with five minutes remaining of the second 90-minute practice session ahead of Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix.

Although a crane again came to his aid, he could only help as his car was lifted off the circuit.

Hamilton, though, was not too concerned as he said: “Everything went smoothly apart from my spin which meant I missed out on my last run, so maybe I could have gone faster.

“It happened as I was catching Sakon Yamamoto (in his Spyker) on a flying lap and I was probably a little too fast going into the corner.

“Despite that we were able to make some positive steps, and I am confident with our performance so far at this track.”

Hamilton was still third fastest behind team-mate Fernando Alonso, much to the delight of boss Ron Dennis.

“An encouraging start to the weekend, with both cars looking competitive,” said Dennis.

“Obviously we will work hard for further improvements, but we are comfortable with the progress we have made so far.

“Unfortunately, Lewis spun in the closing minutes, but this did not hamper our programme too much.”