Lewis Hamilton endured one of the most painful races of his Mercedes career at the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday. Hamilton finished outside the points for the first time this season.
He’d previously recorded DNFs in Australia and the United States, but this was the first time he’s crossed the line outside the top 10. Hamilton eventually came home 12th.
The seven-time world champion started sixth, but he moved before the lights went out, triggering a five-second penalty. To make matters worse, his hesitation saw him fall to ninth on the road.
He couldn’t clear Sergio Perez, and then suffered a puncture – potentially because of debris on the start/finish straight. The misery wasn’t done there as he picked up another penalty for failing to follow the correct safety-car procedure.
Understandably, he wanted to retire from the race at that point, but Mercedes urged him to carry on. He needed to serve his drive-through to avoid a grid drop at the Abu Dhabi GP.
While he dropped to last, he did ultimately finish ahead of RB duo Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson, as well as Williams’ Alex Albon. But that will be no consolation after a crushing few days at Lusail.
Jenson Button says soul-destroying Qatar Grand Prix may end Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes career
Speaking on Sky Sports F1, Hamilton’s former teammate Jenson Button expressed concern that the 39-year-old wouldn’t attend the Abu Dhabi GP. If so, he would already have driven his final laps in a Mercedes before his Ferrari move.
Button says Hamilton is clearly in a ‘tough place’ after a ‘soul-destroying’ weekend. He’d said after Sprint qualifying that he simply wasn’t ‘fast’ anymore.
Mercedes teammate George Russell was competing for the top honours while Hamilton was scrapping for sixth and seventh. He had no explanation for the four-tenth deficit.
Button pointed out that Hamilton was emotionally ready to walk away after the Sao Paulo GP a month ago. He’s desperate to see his fellow Briton banish those thoughts this time.
“I hope that [Abu Dhabi] is his last race for Mercedes,” Button said. “I really do. I hope we see Lewis back in Abu Dhabi. This is mentally such a tough place for him to be in. [For] one of the greatest, if not the greatest ever in this sport, to be in this position, it’s soul destroying. I really feel for him.
“A couple of races ago, that was his mindset. But I hope he has his last race in Abu Dhabi. We know how great he is. And we know how great he is around that track. And I want to see that.”
The unbroadcast onboard footage that sums up Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes woes
BBC F1 commentator Harry Benjamin suspects Hamilton has ‘fallen out of love’ with Mercedes. They have formed the most successful partnership in F1 history with six world titles and 84 race wins.
An early exit would no doubt taint some of those memories. Hamilton still has sponsorship commitments to carry out for the team, which is why he won’t be testing for Ferrari in Abu Dhabi.
Mercedes have made some competitive strides in recent races, with Russell starting the last two from pole. On another smooth circuit in Abu Dhabi, they could be a contender again.
But unseen Hamilton onboard footage from qualifying suggests he’s at a loss as to how to improve. He tellingly raised his hand in bemusement at the end of one of his laps.
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