The FIA stewards have revealed their decision after placing Lewis Hamilton under investigation for driving too slowly on his out lap during Q1 on Friday in Qatar, judging that the Mercedes driver will face no further action.
Hamilton was called to the stewards off the back of an incident that occurred during Q1 with the seven-time world champion investigated for ‘exceeding the time limit between the safety car lines during qualifying.’
This boils down to the fact that Hamilton was driving too slowly on his out lap with the FIA taking special measures this season to alleviate fears of traffic congestion for drivers on flying laps during qualifying sessions.
The 38-year-old wasn’t the only driver to catch the eye of the stewards for his out-lap speed during qualifying on Friday. McLaren’s star rookie Oscar Piastri was also flagged up for a potential violation of this rule, while the AlphaTauri duo of Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda were also placed under investigation.
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However, it was found by the FIA that all four of them ‘took appropriate actions to not impede other drivers, and in all cases they slowed down significantly to allow other drivers to pass while giving those drivers a clear track’.
Regardless of the investigation, Hamilton still wasn’t happy with his performance during qualifying. The British driver was sitting second in the order heading into the final set of flying laps but made an error on his last attempt, dropping him down to fifth place at the chequered flag.
Piastri and McLaren team-mate Lando Norris both saw their lap times deleted after the session was over, promoting Hamilton to third behind team-mate George Russell, but the legendary Brit remained frustrated.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the race, Hamilton said: “Not massively satisfied. It’s just great for the team to be on the first two rows. Difficult at the beginning of the session, tricky conditions out there with the wind.
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“Ultimately, a pretty average session for me. I’m going to give it everything and try and bag those points. It’s great we are ahead of the Ferraris which is key.”
Hamilton was correct in highlighting the importance of this result to Mercedes’ fight with Ferrari. After difficult weekends compared to their Constructor Championship rivals in Singapore and Suzuka, this will be a welcomed chance to stretch out their advantage.
The Silver Arrows sit 20 points clear of Ferrari in the battle for P2 heading into the Qatar Grand Prix and with Charles Leclerc starting 5th and Carlos Sainz qualifying outside of the top ten, Russell and Hamilton have a golden opportunity to move further clear in that battle.
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