24/04/2008 17:06

Barcelona - Felipe Massa needed victory in Bahrain to boost his F1 championship hopes, and the Ferrari driver got it.

On Sunday, it's Lewis Hamilton's turn to respond at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Formula One's most celebrated rookie last year is under pressure this season to rebound from consecutive poor results after winning the first race at the Australian GP.

The 23-year-old McLaren driver had his worst placing in 20 career races at Bahrain after a stall at the start and a rushed overtaking move saw him lose his front wing and eventually finish 13th.

"Obviously, I won't be making the same mistake again," Hamilton said on Thursday. "Running away and coming here feeling fresh (for this weekend) was important."

Hamilton ceded the championship lead to Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen as a result. World champion Raikkonen leads with 19 points, three better than BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld. Hamilton, teammate Heikki Kovalainen and Robert Kubica of BMW Sauber are next with 14.

Hamilton, who led the drivers' championship for most of 2007, isn't letting on if he is feeling the weight of expectations that comes with being an F1 prodigy.

Single point back

"I put a lot of pressure on myself wanting to do well for the team. It's the same as last year. It's been an up-and-down (year), but it's nothing you don't normally see in a season," said Hamilton, who finished a single point back from Raikkonen last season.

"It's a slightly different pressure compared to last year but in a positive way. But I don't think that distracts me or keeps me from wanting to do my job. I want to win more than ever."

Hamilton returns to a track where fans racially taunted F1's first black driver in February. The FIA on Thursday launched its anti-racism "Everyrace" campaign from the same track.

Ferrari remain the favorite to win the 40th edition of the 67-lap race at the challenging 4.655km Circuit de Catalunya on Sunday.

Massa is hoping to repeat last year's form when the Brazilian driver won the Spanish GP on the heels of victory at Bahrain.

Raikkonen, who followed victory at Sepang with a second-place finish behind Massa at Bahrain, has also won here previously - in 2005.

All teams are coming off the brief spring break with car upgrades - including aerodynamic packages - for the opening race on the European calendar with the same attitude: to wait and see if their individual efforts pay off on the track.