Lewis Hamilton insists all is well between himself and Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton insists “things are cool” between him and Mercedes having revealed his “anger” as the team pushed him to start on the soft tyres in Singapore.
Delivering in qualifying at the Marina Bay circuit, Hamilton lined up third on the Singapore Grand Prix grid with his team-mate George Russell in fourth.
Lewis Hamilton: Make no mistake though, things are cool with the team
But Hamilton’s joy turned to “anger” and “frustration” when Mercedes decided to split the drivers’ strategies and start him on the soft Pirellis.
“I was a bit perplexed by it,” he revealed, “because in the past, when we’ve ever been in that position… Normally if George has qualified well like he normally does, and I’m out of the top 10 or something, then we’ll split the strategies, but we were so close. It didn’t make sense to me.
“So I battled as hard as I could to fight to go on the medium tyre, but the team continued to suggest that I started on the soft.”
He did so but the strategy backfired as he didn’t make up positions off the line and was then one of the first needing to pit, eventually crossing the line in sixth place while Russell, who lined up on the mediums, maintained his P4.
Mercedes’ technical director James Allison later acknowledged the strategic error, calling it a “clear mistake.