Lewis Hamilton overcomes difficult qualifying session to secure historic 202nd podium appearance at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton had a difficult qualifying session in Sin City, only being able to muster up 10th. Two costly mistakes at Turn 4 hindered his final Q3 runs, seeing the Briton lock up on his first attempt and slide on the second – subsequently having his lap time deleted.
On the other hand, his teammate, George Russell, started in pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Despite starting on the back foot, Hamilton flew around the circuit, passing five drivers by lap 20. Hamilton fought a valiant effort at the front of the pack, crossing the line in second, with Russell and Sainz finishing first and third, respectively.
“I had a great time, when you’re progressing it’s always a great feeling,” Hamilton expressed to media after securing a record-breaking 202nd podium.
“It felt very much like my old days [karting] at Rye House, starting at the back and coming through – so it was great, [it was a] really good balance in the car today, felt a lot better than it was yesterday – particularly Q3 – but it’s just phenomenal for the team.
In the closing stages of the race, Hamilton was 11 seconds behind his teammate, before trimming it down to just six in five laps. Realising he wasn’t in contention for the win on the antepenultimate lap, Hamilton backed off his teammate.
“It is slightly bittersweet as if we had qualified where we should have yesterday, I think I could have won. Nevertheless, I didn’t think I would have been able to finish P2 today before the race so I’m very happy.
Mercedes has struggled with pace throughout the season, despite totalling four grands prix victories throughout the year. Their car has been track-dependent with some disappointing race weekends for the team.
Looking ahead to the penultimate round and the final Sprint race of the season, Hamilton admits that hotter conditions is where the W15 struggles most:
“I have no idea [about the pace of the car]! I don’t think anyone in the team knows why we’re as quick as we are this weekend, we’re happy about it, but I think often in the hotter conditions we struggle more.
“Maybe Qatar will be cooler and it’s smooth, at the track we were okay last year, Abu Dhabi maybe less so, but we’ll see.” He concluded.
Featured image credits: @MercedesAMGF1 on X