Apr.26 (GMM) One year ago, Lewis Hamilton was the meteoric rookie who seemingly could do no wrong.



At Barcelona, following a disastrous Bahrain grand prix, the 23-year-old McLaren driver is accused of having lost the spring in his step.



A reporter for the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport dared ask him if he is missing the technical experience of departed teammate Fernando Alonso, who some say guided the setup of Hamilton's car last year.



"Nonsense," Hamilton, 23, fired.



"Fernando and I have a similar driving style, but with the setup we usually went our separate ways," he added.



Alonso's former manager, however, is in no doubt that the Spaniard is the missing element at Woking this year.



"Fernando arrived last year, put the car on the right track, and they thanked him by basically kicking him out," Adrian Campos told the Spanish newspaper El Mundo.



"And look where they are now," he added.