Lewis Hamilton endured a frustrating qualifying session at Spa-Francorchamps as his best lap time was deleted for exceeding track limits, adding to his growing list of battles in Belgium.
The Scuderia Ferrari driver had provisionally advanced to Q2 in 7th place, but his lap was later struck from the timesheets, dropping him back to 16th and into the elimination zone. As a result, Hamilton will start Sunday’s race from row 8.
Hamilton apologises to his team.
Following his exit, the British driver spoke to the print media pen, taking full responsibility for his mistake.
“Sorry to the team. All the hard work, all the testing, you know, the filming day that we did [at Mugello], and all the preparation. And then come here and not make it through Q1, it’s unacceptable.”
The seven-time World Champion was asked whether he took turn 4 any differently in Q1 versus the rest of the weekend.
“Pretty much, yeah. I wouldn’t say all weekend. I mean, everyone takes that kerb. It’s probably the furthest I’ve been [on it].
“I don’t agree [with it], no. But I’m out.”
He confirmed that Ferrari will look into the issue and discuss it with the stewards to seek clarification on their decision.
Updates on the car
When questioned if the car felt any better, the driver admitted:
“No, not really,” citing the rear end as the main area of limitation. “If you’ve got a car that you’re not happy with, it’s not ideal,” he continued.
Despite starting from near the back of the grid, Hamilton didn’t rule out the possibility of finding silver linings with the strategy, expecting it would salvage his race.
“It’s going to be hard from where I am, for sure,” he said. “There’s still some kind of opportunity with the strategy. I want to see what I can do with that.”
Hamilton began Saturday’s sprint race in 18th place after spinning in SQ1 because of rear locking, and finished in 15th in the 15-lap contest.
