Hamilton laments lack of 'character' on Barcelona track

Lewis Hamilton has launched an attack on the current Barcelona testing circuits as he believes that recent resurfacing developments have left the track lacking the "character" which it once had, but reckons it is an issue with many other circuits and not just in Catalunya.

With the Grand Prix season fast approaching, every team is testing out their new vehicles in Barcelona to get the feel behind the wheel, as well as attempting to adapt to the introduction of the new halo safety device.

The first three days of testing at the Circuit de Catalunya were snowed off due to the adverse weather conditions, but Hamilton eventually made it out and recorded the fastest lap time of the week (1:19.333). However, he is not a fan of the new surface and thinks the alleged improvements are "a waste of money".

“I’m not quite sure why they do resurface [certain tracks], I think it’s a waste of money in general," the current world champion said.

"The older the surface, the more character there is in a surface.

"If you smooth the thing out, you lose a lot of the character that a track like Barcelona has.

“I always relate it to like a house. A brand new house has got no character, but if you go and buy an old house, it’ll always have a little bit more history and a little bit more character.

"I like a track that is a bit more dated in terms of surface."

Hamilton thinks that drivers simply need to be able to deal with contrasting surfaces more effectively, even if that means ducking and diving around bumps in the road.

“You go to drivers' briefings and there are constantly complaints of bumps, but you can manoeuvre around bumps and you can brake a bit off line, or you have to set the car up to deal with it better in terms of ride," he continued.

"But that’s where the character of a circuit is - you flatten it all out and it's got a bunch of corners but it’s missing something."