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Spa 'firmly behind me' - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton: "Spa was just one of those weekends" © Sutton Images

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Lewis Hamilton insists he has already moved on from the disappointment and negative stories of last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix.

Hamilton was taken out on the first lap but also attracted negative media attention over the weekend with a series of posts on the social networking website Twitter - one of which contained McLaren telemetry. However, he says the weekend and everything that surrounded it is no longer playing on his mind as he looks forward to the Italian Grand Prix at Monza this weekend.

"Spa was just one of those weekends - but the beauty of these double-header races is that it's already firmly behind me," Hamilton said. "And Monza is such a unique and invigorating circuit that it's easy to put my disappointments to one side and just focus on driving as fast as possible this weekend.

"For me, there's something about Formula One's older circuits that's very special; despite each being very different, the newer tracks all seem to have the same character and the same sort of rhythm, but the older circuits are very different. They feel like the land has shaped and influenced them rather than the other way around. I like that - it means you never fall into any particular comfort zone and you're always pushing the car one way or the other to get the best from any lap."

Monza's long straights require a unique car set-up and Hamilton is hoping he can challenge for McLaren's third consecutive victory.

"The first laps out of the pits on Friday always feels incredible because we have such little downforce and the ratios are so long. It feels like you never stop accelerating - and then you hit the brakes and the car feels really unstable, because the wings aren't doing much to keep it settled. You soon get used to it, but it's always exciting to be driving flat-out around Monza because it's such a different experience from anywhere else we visit. I've never won at Monza before - I'll be doing everything I can to take the victory this weekend."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.