Lewis Hamilton demands Ferrari answers as chairman John Elkann steps in over internal row

Résumé détaillé

They fought for a few corners until Leclerc went off track and came back on in the lead. That led to a time penalty which dropped him behind Max Verstappen, who had taken…

Lewis Hamilton said he is seeking answers about his latest grim weekend with Ferrari. He finished the Sao Paulo Grand Prix ninth, his worst result of the season other than the DNF he suffered at the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid. It is the first time all year that the seven-time world champion has finished outside the top six on a Sunday. And it was not just an issue on his side – Charles Leclerc also finished eighth after a post-race penalty, having also struggled to find pace on track at Interlagos.

Hamilton's result could have been better were it not for another communication mix up between him and the Ferrari pit wall which proved costly. Late in the race, as heavy rain began to fall, most drivers immediately headed to the pit lane to change to intermediate tyres, but not Hamilton.

He was called in but stayed out on track, before telling race engineer Carlo Santi that he had not been clear enough about the weather conditions. That left him on slick tyres for another lap around a soaking wet track, costing him a lot of time and almost leading to him crashing out.

But even without that error, other than a strong launch from 20th on the grid, where he started due to engine penalties, Hamilton had struggled for pace in both wet and dry conditions. And that is something he wants to figure out quickly.

He said: "Devastated by [Sunday's] race, especially with how it ended. It started so well, but we struggled with the tyres and massive oversteer. In those conditions, it made things incredibly difficult.

Make sure you don't miss the biggest F1 news and strongest opinion by making the Daily Express one of your Google preferred sources.

"I pushed as hard as I could, but we just didn't have the pace this weekend. We'll work to understand why and come back fighting at the next race. The team worked so hard on the car all weekend and I'm grateful for every bit of that effort. Ultimately, this isn't the race we wanted to deliver."

That disappointing race came a week after Ferrari…

The…

Début de l'article, extrait de Daily Express. Pour lire la suite, ouvrez l'article chez le média.