Disastrous Qatar F1 race “could have been worse”

Lewis Hamilton endured a torrid run to 12th place in the Qatar Grand Prix in an understeering Mercedes, although some of the damage was self-inflicted owing to a false start and a pitlane speeding penalty.

Hamilton also picked up a puncture mid-race and, in the final laps, asked the team if he could ‘box’ the car and retire – only to change his mind when he got the go-ahead.

“It could have been worse, but I finished and it’s over,” he said. “That was me at the start. And then the puncture was really unfortunate. And the pitlane, that was me as well.

“I’ll do my best, but I’ll get back up tomorrow and give it another shot.”

Hamilton started sixth, with his Mercedes team-mate George Russell on pole. Despite jumping the start, Hamilton lost positions to Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso on the opening lap.

Both Mercedes drivers began to complain about what team boss Toto Wolff later called “horrendous understeer” and, although Hamilton passed Alonso to run eighth after the first Safety Car restart, he slipped back from the leading pack and was unable to challenge Perez.

On lap 34 he picked up a front-left puncture at the same time as Ferrari’s Sainz, leading to speculation that both were caused by a debris field left on the main straight when Valtteri Bottas ran over a wing mirror which had fallen off Alex Albon’s Williams.

However, both Hamilton and Sainz have suggested that other objects, such as gravel and kerbs, could have played a part since the front-left tyres – heavily stressed on this circuit – were at the limit of wear at this point in the race.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Hamilton served his five-second penalty at his pitstop but was then handed a drive-through penalty for speeding when the safety car led the field through the pitlane. This dropped him to the penultimate position, from where he eventually recovered to 12th place, despite putting in a request to the pitwall to retire the car.

“We didn’t get the wing setting right,” he said. “It’s happened many times. Yeah, just basically not having enough front wing in the car, and the car just wouldn’t turn.

“So I was just understeering massively for a long period of time. And honestly, for me, it felt like that’s what led to the tyre failing. Maybe it was debris. I didn’t see any debris, to be honest, but it’s not ideal. It happened just as I got to the pitlane entry.”

Hamilton doesn’t expect any change in outcome at this weekend’s final grand prix of the season, in Abu Dhabi, where he will be leaving the team with which he has won six world championships.

“I don’t think we’re going to end up in a high,” he said. “It will end and I think what’s important is how we turn up, we give it our best shot.

“I don’t anticipate a particularly much better weekend than we’ve had in the past weekends, but naturally I’ll try. Go in with low hopes and maybe come out with a better result – it doesn’t really make a big difference either way.

“It’s been a rollercoaster ride of emotions and I’m just grateful I’m still standing and I’m still OK. I’ve had great races in my life and I’ve had bad races in my life. Not too many bad ones.”