F1: Damon Hill predicts Hamilton will win at Spa this weekend

Damon Hill believes Lewis Hamilton can return from the summer break with a first win, the 1996 World Champion picking the Mercedes driver as his favorite for Spa.

“I think it’s going to be Lewis,” he told the Beyond the Grid podcast.

“I think if it’s going to be anyone other than the obvious, you know Max Verstappen victory, then I think I’m going to plump for Lewis because I feel in my bones he is going win a race this year.

“I just think it could be situations at Spa that could fall into his lap a little bit.”

He added: “He’s one there four times, and teams make a big thing of momentum going into the summer break, don’t they?

“Well, Mercedes had that because they would have had a front-row lockout in Hungary had Hamilton not had that DRS problem in qualifying so they had the momentum.”

The 61-year-old reckons Mercedes, who are said to have a “big, big upgrade” coming this weekend, will also benefit from the FIA’s new technical directive regarding flexi-floors.

As of Belgium, a gray area in the regulations that Ferrari and Red Bull have reportedly exploited will be eradicated, putting Mercedes on a more level footing with their rivals.

“And with that slight rule change which should peg back Ferrari and Red Bull, Mercedes,” Hill said.