Lewis Hamilton Humbles Carlos Sainz With Savvy Move That Flew Under the Radar

The F1 2023 season is currently at its business end and the battle is getting heated for second place in the Constructors’ Championship. As things stand, second-placed Mercedes have a 26-point lead over third-placed Ferrari, with six races remaining in the 2023 season. With every point counting at this stage, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton humbled Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz by pulling off a brilliant move on the Spaniard on the last lap of the Qatar Grand Prix sprint race on Saturday.

Following the final safety car during the sprint race, the Briton found himself behind Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and the two Ferraris of Sainz and Charles Leclerc. However, that did not stop Hamilton from finishing fifth, ahead of not only Alonso but also both Ferraris.

After easily getting past both Leclerc and Alonso, Hamilton pulled off a fantastic move on Sainz. The move was so impressive that even fans took to social media to express their delight.

Fans explain how Lewis Hamilton “schooled” Carlos Sainz

Since the primary focus following the conclusion of the Qatar Grand Prix sprint race was primarily on Max Verstappen for winning this third world championship, the on-track battles on the last lap did not receive much attention. However, that did not stop fans from noticing the skill of Lewis Hamilton.

Fans such as Ahmed explained how the Briton brilliantly “dummied” the Spaniard before getting past him.

Lewis Hamilton dummied Carlos Sainz and sent him to grocery store with few corners to go #QatarGP
pic.twitter.com/nccPq9ySlD

— ahmed baokbah 🇸🇦🏎✈️ (@ahmed_baokbah) October 7, 2023

On similar lines, fans such as Rob explained how “Hamilton suckered Sainz in beautifully” to grab fifth place on the final lap of the Qatar GP sprint race.

Hamilton suckered Sainz in beautifully here to grab P5 on the last lap👌🏻 #F1 #QatarGP #F1Sprint pic.twitter.com/LAt5tJ6qb4

— Rob Myers (@RobLMyers) October 7, 2023

Then, there were some other fans such as Theo who believe that Hamilton “schooled” Sainz by using all his experience to pull off an outstanding move on the Ferrari driver.

Lewis really said you’re Carlos Sainz JUNIOR… Schooled that boy!! pic.twitter.com/tJnr9Fb4QJ

— Theo M-T (@Mason_T75) October 7, 2023

With Hamilton finishing fifth and Mercedes teammate George Russell finishing fourth in the Qatar GP sprint, the pressure is on Ferrari to fight back if they are to finish second in the championship. However, the remarks from the Ferrari camp after the sprint seem to suggest that they are not confident of having a strong main race on Sunday either.

Leclerc explains Ferrari’s fears for the Qatar GP main race

While speaking in his interview after the sprint race, Charles Leclerc explained how the hot temperatures in Qatar could prove to be difficult for Ferrari to adjust. “It’s definitely going to be very difficult because we’ve got extremely hot temperatures, where we normally take a bit of time to understand what’s the limit for the cooling,” explained the Monegasque (as quoted by mirror.co.uk).

Moreover, since all teams have only had one practice session this weekend because of the sprint race format, Leclerc believes that things could “either go incredibly well or incredibly wrong” for them. Hence, if the Prancing Horse fails to deliver during the main race, Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes will try their best to capitalize on any mistake from their rivals.