F1 update:Lewis Hamilton Offers Million Dollar Reward for Mercedes Investigation Amid Disappointing……read more
Lewis Hamilton Offers Million Dollar Reward for Mercedes Investigation Amid Disappointing……read more
Lewis Hamilton has offered a million-dollar reward following his continued struggles with Mercedes’ performance at the Brazilian Grand Prix. The seven-time Formula 1 world champion endured a challenging weekend at the Interlagos circuit, finishing only 11th in the sprint race and 10th in the main event. The weekend marked another low point in what has been a frustrating season for Hamilton, who has faced a range of issues with his car and performance throughout the year.
Hamilton’s Brazilian Grand Prix campaign began with a poor qualifying session where he was knocked out in Q1, starting the race in 14th place. Despite his reputation as a master in wet conditions, Hamilton couldn’t overcome the setup issues and struggled in qualifying once again. As a result, he found himself starting far from where he would expect, having to fight through the field in both the sprint and main race. Although Hamilton made an impressive start in the main race, quickly moving up to 10th by the end of the first lap, his progress stalled thereafter. He failed to capitalize on his early gains, making a number of mistakes and ultimately finishing 10th, earning only one point from a weekend where a maximum of 34 points were up for grabs.
This disappointing result has further highlighted the struggles Hamilton has faced in the second half of the season. After what was a promising start to the year, he has now dropped below his teammate, George Russell, in the drivers’ championship standings. Initially, Hamilton had a 25-point lead over Russell, thanks to the latter’s disqualification from the Belgian Grand Prix, a race in which Hamilton was awarded the points. However, this gap has now evaporated, with Russell outperforming Hamilton in recent races and leading him by a significant margin in qualifying. In fact, Hamilton’s performance in qualifying has been particularly poor this season, with Russell now having a 16-5 advantage over him in the head-to-head qualifying battle.
The Brazilian GP performance was not an isolated incident. Hamilton has endured a series of inconsistent results, especially in recent races. A retirement at the US Grand Prix, combined with a lackluster finish in Brazil, means Hamilton has collected just 26 points from the last five races. This has been a stark contrast to the promising form he and Russell showed earlier in the season, when the Mercedes W15 car appeared to be among the top contenders, securing three wins in four races during the summer. Since then, however, the car has struggled to maintain that level of performance, often appearing as the fourth-fastest car on the grid.
In a candid exchange with the media after the Brazilian GP, Hamilton expressed his frustration with the car’s ongoing performance issues. When asked by a reporter about the root cause of his struggles, Hamilton responded with a hint of sarcasm, stating, “You tell me. That’s the million-dollar question. If you can find it [the problem], I’ll give you a million dollars.” His comment reflected the deep frustration he feels, as he has been unable to identify the source of the performance inconsistencies that have plagued his season.
Despite the setbacks, Hamilton remains committed to finishing his 12-season tenure at Mercedes on a high note, though his hopes of signing off with a competitive car have been dashed by the ongoing performance issues. Mercedes has yet to fully resolve the problems with the W15, leaving both Hamilton and Russell searching for answers. As the season nears its conclusion, Hamilton’s focus has shifted toward trying to recover from the recent slump and ensuring he can maintain his competitive edge.
Looking ahead to next season, Hamilton will face even more pressure with the arrival of Charles Leclerc at Ferrari, who is widely regarded as one of the grid’s best qualifiers. This shift in team dynamics, coupled with Mercedes’ ongoing struggles, could make Hamilton’s final seasons in F1 more challenging than ever before.
For now, Hamilton’s plea for answers remains unanswered, and the search for the missing piece of the puzzle continues.