BREAKING: Hamilton D...... Dutch GP Weekend ‘Done’ After Q2 Exit...

Hamilton Deems Dutch GP Weekend ‘Done’ After Q2 Exit, Russell Content with P4 Result for Mercedes

The Dutch Grand Prix weekend took a sour turn for Lewis Hamilton, as the seven-time world champion endured a frustrating qualifying session at Zandvoort, ultimately exiting in Q2 and compounding his woes with a grid penalty. In stark contrast, his Mercedes teammate George Russell managed to secure a respectable fourth place on the grid, marking a tale of two contrasting fortunes within the team.

Hamilton’s struggles began early in the session, as he found himself embroiled in a controversial incident with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez during Q1. The incident, which saw Hamilton allegedly impede Perez, set the tone for the remainder of his qualifying effort. Despite showing initial promise, Hamilton’s second run in Q2 fell short, leaving him in 12th place and out of contention for the pole position shootout.

Reflecting on his performance, Hamilton expressed his frustration with the sequence of events, describing the session as a “terrible” experience. “It just went downhill like a domino effect from the moment with Checo [Perez], then the balance just got more and more snappy, more and more ‘oversteery’ – it was terrible,” Hamilton remarked. The Briton was evidently displeased, adding, “It’s definitely very, very frustrating, naturally, but it is what it is. It’s kind of the weekend done and I’ll have to move on to next week [at Monza].”

Hamilton’s situation deteriorated further when the stewards handed him a three-place grid penalty for the incident with Perez. The penalty relegated him to 15th on the starting grid, significantly diminishing his prospects for a strong finish in Sunday’s race. Acknowledging the challenges ahead, Hamilton seemed resigned to the difficult task of recovering to the points, particularly given the disrupted nature of the practice sessions and the tricky weather conditions that had plagued the weekend.

“The rain definitely made it tricky in the morning [in FP3], not to see where the car balance was,” Hamilton explained. “I think ultimately, if everyone had had a dry P3, we probably would have done a bit of a better job with the set-up, maybe, for qualifying, but still, I think just [the] performance wasn’t there from my side.”

In contrast, George Russell managed to navigate the tricky conditions and disruptions with greater success. After a scare in Q1, where he was nearly eliminated, Russell recovered to post a strong lap that saw him progress comfortably to the later stages of qualifying. His performance in Q3, while not perfect, was enough to secure a second-row start in P4, a result that the Briton deemed fair given the circumstances.

Reflecting on his performance, Russell commented, “It’s always a little bit difficult psychologically when you go out there and it’s just not feeling as you expect, and you’re down the order looking likely to, or potentially getting knocked out of Q1. We just had to take a reset. Q1 at the end I was strong, I think I was second, Q2 was really strong again right behind the McLarens, and then Q3 it just didn’t quite come to me – I expected a little bit more. But I think P4 was a fair result.”

Looking ahead to the race, Russell remained optimistic about his chances, though he acknowledged the strong pace of the McLaren cars ahead of him. “I think it’s all possible. I think realistically McLaren are still a smidge ahead of everyone,” Russell stated. Despite the challenges, Russell highlighted the progress Mercedes has made with their upgrades, while also recognizing that McLaren’s own improvements have kept them ahead of much of the field.

“McLaren have already overtaken Red Bull in terms of performance. We’ve just got to keep working hard, but they’re definitely in the prime position right now,” Russell concluded.

As the dust settled on a dramatic qualifying session, the Dutch Grand Prix promised to be an uphill battle for Hamilton, while Russell’s solid grid position left Mercedes hopeful for a competitive showing on Sunday.