Hamilton blames his own “very, very poor performance” for his shock exit in Spa qualifying
Having suffered his a shock Q1 exit in Friday’s sprint qualifying, Ferrari’s seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton endured similar fortunes in the main qualifying session for Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix.
Having failed to set a good enough lap in the middle stages of Q1, Lewis Hamilton found himself in the danger zone in the final minutes of Q1. His final effort provisionally put him seventh, just behind teammate Charles Leclerc.
However, he had his best lap time deleted for track limits as the stewards ruled that all four wheels of his Ferrari went over the white line on the entry to Raidillion.
The incident saw Hamilton drop outside the top 15 drivers, and as a result, he will start tomorrow’s Belgian Grand Prix from a disappointing P16 on the grid.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Hamilton was quick to admit that the poor result was down to him, and he branded his performance as “unacceptable.”
"It’s not been a great day but we got some valuable insight into the new suspension and upgrades during the Sprint. The team made further adjustments ahead of qualifying based on what we learned. Unfortunately, my lap time was deleted for track limits, and I take full responsibility for that.
"And then from my side, another mistake," he explained to Sky Sports F1. "So I really got to look internal. I got to apologise to my team because it's just unacceptable to be out in both Q1s. It's a very, very poor performance for myself."
Asked what he expects from the 44-lap race, the seven-time champion sounded a pessimistic note, claiming that he does not think there is much to achieve from the back of the grid.
"I don't think there's really much we can do. So I just try and start from where I am and see where I can get from there. Tomorrow’s race will be challenging, with overtaking being quite difficult here, but I’m fully focused on making up ground and fighting for points to reward the hard work everyone’s done back at the factory to bring these updates."
Signing off with a word for his expectations for the remainder of the season, Hamilton noted: "I mean, we're trying to do the best with what we have.
“And then obviously everyone's working flat out back in the factory. We have had upgrades, but I think that's probably it for the rest of the year.
"And then I think the focus is now, back at the factory at least, is to focus on next year's car. This season has been a tricky one," concluded Hamilton.
