Hamilton’s Frustration: How Did Mercedes Outperform Ferrari in Las Vegas?
In a shocking turn of events at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton left the desert with just a single point, his disappointment palpable after witnessing a remarkable comeback from his competitors. The seven-time world champion, who initially started his race from the back of the pack, found himself grappling with more than just the racing track—he was left questioning the strategic decisions of his own team, Ferrari.
Hamilton’s race day started on a rocky note, with a disastrous qualifying session leaving him in 19th position. However, he managed to claw his way up to 10th place, thanks in large part to chaotic incidents during the opening laps that shuffled the field. Remarkably, he found himself in 12th position after just five laps, but his efforts were dwarfed by a stunning performance from Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes.
Antonelli, who began the race even further back in 17th, executed an extraordinary comeback that saw him finish in a jaw-dropping fourth position—29 seconds ahead of Hamilton. Even more astonishing was the fact that Antonelli had incurred a five-second penalty for a pre-race infraction, yet he still achieved a finish that left Hamilton scratching his head in disbelief.
What went wrong for Hamilton? The question was on his lips as he engaged in a post-race debrief with his track engineer, Riccardo Adami. “What happened with the strategy? How did I end up in 10th place?” Hamilton queried, clearly bewildered by the gap between him and Antonelli, who had managed to overtake not only him but several others in the process.
Adami explained that Antonelli’s early pit stop during a Virtual Safety Car phase allowed him to capitalize on fresher tires, which proved decisive. “They stopped early, on lap three, and were able to maintain tire superiority for the remainder of the race,” Adami revealed, indicating a strategic misstep on Ferrari’s part that hindered Hamilton’s chances of climbing higher in the standings.
Hamilton’s frustration with the team’s tactics was evident, as he couldn’t shake off the feeling of being stuck in traffic while his rival soared past him. “I thought we were in a good position at one point,” he lamented, a sentiment echoed by fans who witnessed Hamilton’s struggles against a backdrop of Mercedes’s strategic brilliance.
The Las Vegas Grand Prix has left Hamilton and Ferrari with a bitter taste, igniting questions about their race strategy and execution moving forward. With the season drawing to a close, the pressure mounts—can Ferrari regroup and learn from this blunder, or will Hamilton continue to be ensnared in the web of strategic miscalculations? One thing is certain: the battle for supremacy in Formula 1 is heating up, and every point matters.
