SIR Jackie Stewart says Lewis Hamilton would be heading into Sunday's British Grand Prix still in charge of the Formula 1 world championship but for a lack of clear communication.
Hamilton was on top of the world after his win in Monaco, but has since fallen from grace after mistakes in Canada and France.
Driving into the back of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen in the pit lane in Montreal resulted in a ten-place grid penalty for F
rance, where his pursuit of points resulted in a drive-through penalty.
Three-time former world champion Stewart feels a wise head in the McLaren team would have served Hamilton well at both races, and seen him in the headlines for the right reasons.
But as Stewart admits, finding a pit-wall engineer willing to take on the role of psychologist is virtually impossible.
"One of the biggest and most important elements is communication, and there is enough of that going on," said Stewart, in his role as global ambassador for RBS at the Royal Automobile Club in London.
"Look at the accident in Montreal where there was so much publicity about Lewis, and with Nico (Rosberg], but not so much. How did that happen? Simply because there was so much distraction, so much interference going on in their young heads that they didn't hear the message 'the pit lane is closed, the red light is on'.
"Lewis had pulled away from the rest of the field and was enjoying a dream drive, whilst Nico, in a very competitive car, was possibly on for a podium.
"Then the safety car came out, and I don't care who you are, you are going to be upset and annoyed by that. When he came in, he needed to be talked down mentally, and that is almost a psychiatrist's job. That is where a coach comes in.
"The man who should be talking to him is a man who specialises in good, clear communication, who knows when to a put an emphasis on a certain word.
"You have to bring the guy's head down so when he accelerates out of there, you tell him, 'The red light is on, do you understand?'. The blame Lewis and Nico received was all on their shoulders, and that was wrong because the team should have ensured the message was clear."
The full article contains 398 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
