Lewis Hamilton was left “gutted” by the end to his Saudi Arabian Grand Prix “hitting the fan” due to a virtual safety car.
Even with the prospect of a podium far beyond the seven-time Formula One world champion’s ailing Mercedes, a long opening stint on the Hard tyres had set him on course for a good haul of points having started 15th - following last week’s podium in Bahrain.
But Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren stopped in the entrance of the pit lane and drew out the VSC, leaving Hamilton unable to dive into the pits before the entry was shut. Unable to take advantage of a cheap stop, he changed onto the Mediums with ten laps to go and had to battle for a single point in tenth place.
“I struggled at the beginning with the tyre temperatures, and then it started getting a bit better and I started to get in on the guys ahead,” he told Sky Sports.
“They were on the Mediums and it was a really good stint and I was pushing, doing pretty much the same times as George on new Hards.
“So I was feeling good at that point, and then it all the hit the fan during those cars stopping. I don’t really know, I’ll have to speak to the team. It’s gutting, I got one point at least and we’ll work hard - we both got points for the team.”
Both Hamilton and teammate George Russell have admitted that their Mercs are underpowered compared to the Red Bull and Ferrari cars competing for race wins, with the veteran unsure of when - and if - that will change.
“Not much has changed since the last race, it’s only been a few days,” he noted. “What I know is that today I couldn’t keep up with the Haas at the end.
“Whatever power they have, the came slingshotting past me so we’ve got a lot of work to do. But I’ve got a good team and we’ll just keep our heads down.”
