After a telling blow in the title race at the Madring, Lewis Hamilton is determined to put his Spanish Grand Prix disappointment behind him and focus on the next race, Baku.
Hamilton suffered a bitter blow to his title aspirations at the Spanish Grand Prix when he retired early from the race after his brakes failed.
Lewis Hamilton responds after Spanish Grand Prix retirement
Hamilton had an eventful start to his race at the Madring, where he lined up fourth on the grid, one place behind his 2021 title rival Max Verstappen.
The two clashed on the opening lap, with Verstappen – as he saw it – taking evasive action into the run-off to avoid a collision. He rejoined ahead of Hamilton.
Verstappen told his Red Bull race engineer GianPiero Lambiase: “Lewis almost shunted into me, he was out of control. If I didn’t move, he just shunted into me. I would’ve been ahead.”
Hamilton didn’t see it that way, and told Ferrari: “Max has got to give back the position.”
The stewards and Red Bull agreed with the seven-time world champion, and Verstappen was ordered to let Hamilton through.
But as Verstappen slowed to allow Hamilton to pass, it was clear that the Briton was in trouble. Hamilton, fearing brake issues, took several seconds to pass Verstappen only to relinquish the position moments later as his brake pedal went long.
The Ferrari driver was still running but lost several positions in one lap before bringing his SF-26 into the pits, “barely” able to stop his car.
The DNF was a bitter blow to Hamilton’s title aspirations, perhaps even the last blow, as he now trails championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 101 points with nine Grands Prix and one Sprint remaining. That’s a maximum of just 233 points still in play.
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But while Hamilton was clearly, and understandably, disappointed in the immediate aftermath of the Spanish Grand Prix, he has since issued a rallying cry on social media.
“Firstly, a big thank you to the team for the job they did throughout the weekend,” he wrote on Instagram.
“We were in a position to fight for a strong result, but unfortunately an issue with the brakes system brought our afternoon to an early end.
“It’s disappointing, but we’ll move on and turn our attention to the next race and do our best to come back strong.
“Thanks to all the fans for always showing up. See you at the next one.”
Hamilton’s team principal Fred Vasseur was asked about his driver’s chances of winning the world title.
He didn’t write it off, but he also wasn’t positive.
“Two or three weeks ago, I told you that I will take it race by race,” Vasseur told PlanetF1.com and other accredited media. “I didn’t change.”
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
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Originally published by Planet F1 —
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