BREAKING:Lewis Hamilton Frustrated After P5 Finish in Monaco GP: “Pe… read more
Penalty ruined my race” Lewis Hamilton finished fifth in Monaco but expressed frustration over a grid penalty that he believes compromised his race. paraphrase
Lewis Hamilton Frustrated After P5 Finish in Monaco GP: “Penalty Ruined My Race”
Monte Carlo, Monaco – Lewis Hamilton was left visibly frustrated after finishing fifth in the 2025 Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, blaming a grid penalty for what he described as a missed opportunity to secure a stronger result. The Mercedes driver, who had shown encouraging pace during practice and qualifying sessions, felt that the penalty imposed ahead of the race severely limited his chances of contending for a podium on one of the most challenging circuits for overtaking.
“Honestly, the penalty ruined my race,” Hamilton said in a post-race interview. “We had the performance this weekend. The car felt good, the team did everything right, and we had the pace to compete at the front. But starting from further back on a track like this, where overtaking is nearly impossible, it just took away any real shot we had.”
The penalty, issued for a minor infringement during qualifying, dropped Hamilton a few places down the starting grid. In Monaco, where track position is critical due to the tight and twisty nature of the street circuit, such setbacks often dictate the outcome of the race before it even begins.
Despite a strong start and consistent laps throughout the Grand Prix, Hamilton found himself stuck in traffic and unable to close the gap to the leading pack. Although he managed to finish ahead of several key rivals, the frustration of what could have been was evident.
“It’s one of those races where you need everything to go right — strategy, track position, and clean air,” he explained. “We didn’t have that today because of the penalty, and that’s tough to accept when you know the car had more to give.”
Hamilton’s fifth-place finish continues a mixed season for Mercedes, a team still striving to return to the consistent front-running form it enjoyed in previous years. Team Principal Toto Wolff acknowledged the disappointment, stating, “We had a good package this weekend, but the penalty compromised Lewis’s race strategy. In Monaco, that makes all the difference.”
As the F1 calendar moves on, Hamilton remains hopeful that Mercedes can carry the momentum from Monaco’s performance into upcoming races — without the setbacks.
“We’re making progress, and that’s encouraging,” Hamilton said. “Now it’s about executing a clean weekend. If we do that, we’ll be right in the fight.”
