By Julian Linden
NEW YORK (Reuters) - McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, under fire from fans and rival drivers after losing his temper at the Monaco Grand Prix, will learn from his mistakes just as Ayrton Senna did, Williams driver Rubens Barrichello said.
Hamilton was roundly criticized after colliding with Barrichello's team mate Pastor Maldonado and Ferrari's Felipe Massa in Monaco before lashing out at stewards.
The 2008 world champion later apologized for his rant and Barrichello said he expected the Briton would mellow with age.
"Lewis is a racer, a big one," Barrichello told Reuters on Wednesday.
"In 10 years time, Lewis will look back and say 'I shouldn't have tried that' or 'yes I should have kept doing that'.
"I don't think, right now, you can get the most experienced driver to grab him and say 'Lewis you shouldn't have done this' because it won't work."
Barrichello, chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers Association, said Hamilton reminded him of Senna, the triple world champion from Brazil who was killed in a crash at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix for Williams.
Senna famously clashed not only with drivers from rival teams but also with his own team mates before eventually becoming more placid as the years went on.
"He's (Hamilton) doing very well, so you've got to just let life teach him what's right and what is not," Barrichello said.
"The most important thing is that he's phenomenal, he's quick, he's a showman because he does some good overtaking, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
"In the past, Ayrton Senna was criticized for having been very dangerous on the track and you could see he calmed down as the years progressed and the same thing will happen to Lewis."
(Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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