Lewis Hamilton stepped into his W15 at the Yas Marina Circuit on Saturday, aiming to deliver one final impressive performance as a Mercedes driver before his move to Ferrari. However, a Q1 debacle during qualifying might dash those aspirations.
Hamilton was eliminated in the first part of qualifying after a bollard became lodged in the W15’s floor, significantly affecting its performance. However, he attributed his early exit more to the timing of his push lap than to the impact from the bollard.
Toto Wolff, agreeing with Hamilton, called his team’s decision “idiotic”. He felt the need “to apologize to Lewis. And everyone on the team that worked very hard.”
Toto Wolff: I just need to apologize to Lewis. And everyone in the team that worked very hard. He was the quicker driver with the set up and also improving the car for next year. Inexcusable. I have rarely been so down. This has been the worst part of it. It was just idiotic.
— Junaid #JB17 (@JunaidSamodien_) December 7, 2024
Hamilton stated that he had been aiming for a podium finish after assessing his race pace throughout the weekend. Meanwhile, Wolff admitted he had never felt so dejected and highlighted the minimal reward for the risks taken by the team.
“You don’t risk so much in a Q1 when we had the pace to make it out of the session. The most valuable driver for the team and the sport is out in Q1. I can only say sorry to him,” added Wolff.
Hamilton has gained two positions on the starting grid due to penalties for Charles Leclerc and Franco Colapinto, which could provide some relief for him.
Hamilton can still come up with an impressive result
Hamilton will have to contend with traffic at the start of the race and is positioned far down the order, but that doesn’t mean he can’t still aim for the result he initially desired. In Las Vegas, starting from P10, he managed to secure a P2 finish.
If things go right, he might get a result. However, in Las Vegas, the only difference was that on the race day, Mercedes was clearly overperforming everyone, which might not be the case here.
Already McLaren and Ferrari have done better and the Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are several places above. The only thing Hamilton can hope for is to make several overtakes and get as many points as possible. If done in an impressive way, he might receive the exit he is hoping for.
