Lewis Hamilton finished 16th during qualifying at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, in what was his first Q1 exit since Brazil in 2017.
Coming into the weekend, Mercedes were not expected to lock out the front row like they did last December. However, the thought that seven-time World Champion Hamilton would not make it to Q2, was unfathomable.
Hamilton looked uncomfortable from the very get go on Saturday evening. He came out on the track with medium compound tires, something which didn’t work out at all. After Nicholas Latifi’s crash and a red flag, the Brit came on to the track on softs.
When he started his flying lap, people definitely expected him to climb towards the top of the timing charts. To everyone’s horror, the 37-year old could not put up a time good enough to get him out of Q1.
It looked like he was gaining some time towards the end of his final run, but Lance Stroll’s improved time pushed him further back. This means Hamilton will not take part in Q2 of an F1 Qualifying session for the first time since 2017.
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F1 Twitter couldn’t believe Lewis Hamilton getting knocked out of Q1 in qualifying
As expected, social media was on fire following Hamilton’s Q1 exit. Most of the community was left shocked, that a driver as consistent and brilliant as him couldn’t manage to do so.
What’s worse for the Brit is that, his teammate George Russell, not only made it to Q2, but was fourth fastest overall. Alex Albon, Nicholas Latifi, Nico Hulkenberg and Yuki Tsunoda were the other drivers who joined Hamilton in his exit from Q1.
Mercedes have been lacking pace overall throughout the weekend. With Hamilton starting 16th tomorrow, the Silver Arrows will be hoping that he manages to make his way up the field and get some points for them.
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