Lewis Hamilton says the disappointing form in which he ends his Mercedes career does not “define the journey” he has taken during his 12 seasons with the team.
The seven-time world champion will drive in his final race for Mercedes at next weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, before leaving the Silver Arrows to join Ferrari next season.
Hamilton’s penultimate outing for the Silver Arrows saw him finish out of the points in 12th after a tumultuous 57-lap race at Lusail in which he received two penalties from the stewards – one for a jump start and then for pit speed lane. later in the match – and suffered a puncture.
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Lewis Hamilton apologizes for false start and pit lane incident but says he and Mercedes car ‘not getting along’ after 12th in Qatar
“Even if it ends like it did this weekend, I don’t think it defines the journey we’ve had and the journey we’ve had, but I’ll give it my all,” Hamilton said. Sky Sports F1.
Hamilton has struggled in qualifying recently, failing to finish in the top five in each of the last five races and twice not even finishing in the top 10.
His Sundays have generally been far superior, but on this occasion the mistakes oozed out. After being told of his pit-lane speeding penalty, Hamilton asked Mercedes if he could retire his car, a request that was refused.
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Watch Lewis Hamilton’s false start at the Qatar Grand Prix
“It just didn’t go that well, but these things happen,” Hamilton added.
“Don’t judge me by how many times I fall, but I’ll get up tomorrow and give it another go.
“The car and I didn’t get on so well. But we were very, very far back at the start and we didn’t have enough wing to start, the cars were quite different and it wasn’t really great to drive.
“But, my mistake today I apologize to the team for the wrong start and then the incident in the pit-lane.”
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Watch Lewis Hamilton struggle with handling problems as George Russell loses track position after disastrous pit lane
Hamilton admitted he does not have high hopes for a dramatic turnaround in form in Abu Dhabi, but insisted it is the approach to the weekend rather than the result that is important to him.
“I mean I don’t think we will end up at a high level,” he told written media in Qatar.
“It will end and I think what matters is how we come, we give our best. I’m not expecting a much better weekend than we’ve had in previous weekends, but of course I’ll try.
“Go in with low hopes and come out with a better result then great, but it doesn’t make a big difference either way. These last few races don’t impact everything we’ve done together.”
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Extended footage of the Qatar Grand Prix from Lusail International Circuit
Russell: Mercedes’ pace is completely gone
Hamilton’s team-mate George Russell was unable to capitalize on his pole position as he was edged out at the first corner by winner Max Verstappen and then Lando Norris.
Running third, Russell was the first of the front-runners to pit, but an extremely slow stop saw him pitted in traffic and lose track position to McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, both Ferrari and Hamilton.
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George Russell says Mercedes ‘didn’t have the pace today’ as he falls from pole to P4 in disappointing and frustrating race for Mercedes
While his hopes of repeating last week’s win in Las Vegas were dashed, Russell managed to recover to fourth after Sainz and Hamilton suffered punctures and Norris was penalized for failing to slow under yellow flags.
“After the pit stop I couldn’t get back through Fernando (Alonso). I was on the same pace as (Sauber’s) Zhou Guanyu,” said Russell. Sky Sports F1.
“The speed we had on Friday and Saturday completely disappeared for both Lewis and me, so we have to understand why that was.
“P4 was probably a better result than we deserved.”
Watch the final race of the 2024 Formula 1 season – the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – live this week on Sky Sports F1, with Sunday’s race at 1pm. Get Sky Sports F1 or stream with NOW
