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Lewis Hamilton narrowly missed out on a podium finish at the Dutch Grand Prix after a late fight with George Russell, but the Ferrari driver believes the decisive moments came much earlier in the race.
Hamilton lost track position to Russell when Ferrari made his final pit stop under virtual safety car conditions. The seven-time world champion then began closing on his former Mercedes teammate on fresher tyres. However, his first attack was interrupted by another virtual safety car caused by debris on the circuit, leaving Hamilton with no opportunity to complete the move when racing resumed for the final two laps.
The result followed a difficult weekend for Ferrari, despite Hamilton’s confidence in the car’s potential. His earlier positive assessment after Ferrari’s qualifying setback had pointed towards race pace offering hope, but the final outcome left him focused on lost opportunities rather than the late battle itself.
After Hamilton crossed the line, Ferrari engineer Carlo Santi told him he had been ‘unlucky’ in the fight with Russell. Hamilton immediately rejected that interpretation.
“We weren’t unlucky,” he said. “We lost time earlier and that cost us P3.”
When Santi suggested they could discuss the matter later, Hamilton replied: “We can discuss it offline.”
The tension had built during Hamilton’s battle with teammate Charles Leclerc. Hamilton qualified ahead of Leclerc but fell behind him on the opening lap. Running longer on each of his first two stints allowed Hamilton to close the gap, and he told Ferrari that he was ‘quicker than Charles’ because of his fresher tyres.
He also warned the team not to cost themselves ‘a better result’. As the delay continued, Hamilton complained that Ferrari was ‘just losing time’. Once Leclerc eventually pitted to give him clear air, Hamilton responded sarcastically: “Great way of wasting time, guys. Great job.”
The episode has renewed the question of whether Ferrari should favour Hamilton, who was ahead of Leclerc in the standings, to maximise its drivers’ championship prospects. So far, however, the team has shown no inclination to establish such a hierarchy.
After Kimi Antonelli finished second, Hamilton dropped to third in the standings behind Russell. The pair are level on points, 59 behind Antonelli, although Russell holds the advantage on race wins.
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.