Sportsupdated 1h ago2 min read
Lewis Hamilton Apologises to Ferrari After Singapore Grand Prix Strategy Override Drops Him to P6
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Hamilton stayed out under the Virtual Safety Car, defying Ferrari, causing a slide to sixth. He apologised to Ferrari for the costly strategy decision.
14 outlets told this the same way.
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Singapore strategy backfires
Lewis Hamilton apologised to Ferrari after overriding the pit wall and choosing his own strategy during the Singapore Grand Prix, when he dropped from third to sixth in the closing laps.
Hamilton told his team on the slowing-down lap, saying: "Sorry, boys. I let you down today with that strategy. My call, and I lost us valuable points. I'll try and make up for it in the next one."
Ferrari said Hamilton was running in third behind Charles Leclerc on the 39th of 62 laps when a Virtual Safety Car appeared, and Ferrari called him in but he missed the entry and stayed out.
Hamilton later explained that he chose to start on a new medium tyre to go long and try to make a one-stop work, but he said the medium "didn't perform as well as the soft."
Hamilton’s decision left him vulnerable as Kimi Antonelli and Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri passed him in the closing stages, and he finished P6.
Vasseur, VSC and radio
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur said the call to pit was clear, telling Sky Sports F1: "We called him, we called them both to pit." Vasseur added that Hamilton missed the pit entry, and he said the team would have been "P2-P3" because they were "P2-P3 on track." Hamilton also described the moment of the Virtual Safety Car, saying: "Under the VSC, the team called me in but I missed the entry."
Hamilton said he then decided to stay out to hold track position to the end, but he reported that in the closing laps he was "struggling massively with tyre degradation and lost three places, finishing P6." Ferrari published Hamilton’s comments after he felt unwell and was given permission by the FIA to miss the interview zone, known as the media pen.
Title pressure heads to Austin
Kimi Antonelli moved to the brink of the world title after Hamilton’s error, with the BBC saying Antonelli can now win the world championship at the next round in Austin. The BBC reported that Antonelli’s lead over George Russell extended to 102 points and 111 over Hamilton, and it said Antonelli needs an advantage of at least 125 points to clinch the title at the Circuit of the Americas on 25 October. Hamilton’s result also reduced his advantage over race winner Max Verstappen to just eight points, and the BBC said Verstappen was now fourth in the standings.
Ferrari framed the weekend’s next focus around Austin, with Vasseur telling Sky Sports F1: "Now let's be focused on Austin." Hamilton said he would "continue to put the work in and come back fighting at the next race," after finishing sixth and taking responsibility for the decisions he made.