Lauda: Lewis is getting worse, not better

Former F1 Champion Niki Lauda has slatted Lewis Hamilton's Bahrain GP performance, saying the McLaren driver's form has slumped this season.

Hamilton won the season-opening grand prix in Australia, however, has struggled to match the Ferraris ever since. While in Malaysia he had to settle for third place due to a lack of pace, in Bahrain he had a weekend to forget as he suffered not one but two crashes.

The Brit had a huge accident in Friday's second practice session, which caused severe damage to his MP4-23, forcing his mechanics to rebuild it overnight, while in Sunday's race he ran into the back of Fernando Alonso's Renault and had to pit for new nose.

It was a disappointing showing from a driver many believe should be fighting for race wins and the World title and Lauda reckons Hamilton has only himself to blame for his woes.

"At the moment Lewis has absolutely not impressed me," Lauda told the Daily Mirror. "I thought he would get better this year, but he has got worse. He is in pretty bad shape.

"The crash with Fernando Alonso and, then on Friday in practice too, was absolutely needless. Lewis showed nothing in Bahrain."

And as for what Lauda believes is the cause of Hamilton's problems, he said: "I think it's because of the pressure he is putting on himself."