Lewis Hamilton’s dire United States Grand Prix weekend ended when he spun into a gravel trap on the second lap of the race.
The Mercedes driver started 17th on the hard tyre compound, but made good progress on the first lap. But the car snapped away from him at turn 19 on the second lap.“I had a great start, obviously shot up the inside and got up to 12th,” he told the official F1 channel. “And at that point, it was only the second lap, so I’m not flat out and not pushing particularly, just trying to manage the tyres and the car started bouncing on the way in and then it just lost all out of the rear and it just went around on me.”
“I’ve never spun in the race before, not that I remember at least, and if I have it can only be once, maybe, before in all these years,” he added. “So definitely frustrating but I do know that it’s not that I wasn’t focussed or anything, it was just unfortunate.”
Mercedes’ press release quoted Hamilton saying the team “measured a large gust of wind, up to 40 kph, as I turned in which likely didn’t help.”
It capped a miserable weekend for the seven-times world champion in Austin. Hamilton, who has just five rounds left at Mercedes before joining Ferrari, started near the back after being eliminated in the first round of qualifying yesterday.
When the weekend began Hamilton looked quick enough to challenge for pole position for the sprint race. However he had to back off when he encountered yellow flags approaching turn 12.
Hamilton reported a problem with his car at the beginning of the sprint race and was only able to gain a single place from his starting position of seventh. Qualifying for the grand prix then brought more frustration as he failed to make the cut for Q2, consigning him to start at the back of the grid.
His team mate George Russell crashed in qualifying at the same corner where Hamilton’s race ended. He started from the pit lane after the team made changes to his car’s set-up, and recovered to finish sixth.
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2024 United States Grand Prix
- McLaren insist stewards made ‘provable error’ after losing bid for review of Norris’ penalty
- Why McLaren’s focus on Verstappen’s driving failed to overturn Norris’ penalty
- Stewards reject McLaren’s request to review Norris’ United States GP penalty
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- McLaren request review of Norris’ penalty for off-track pass on Verstappen
Matt (@hollidog)
20th October 2024, 23:56
Pretty sure he spun in Hungary in his early days
Joe (@jb784)
21st October 2024, 0:13
2014. But that was wet and he started from the PL
F1statsfan (@f1statsfan)
21st October 2024, 0:52
He also spun at Monza in 2009 during the before last lap while running 3rd.
grat
21st October 2024, 1:42
Yeah, I just re-watched the highlights– he overcooked it at the Lesmos exit, crossed the track, and crashed into a wall. Not really a spin, per se (because he hit the wall), but definitely some snap oversteer exiting the corner.
For Hamilton, it was definitely a strange one.
Drop Saudi
21st October 2024, 13:26
Either wind, or he’s getting old. Wind I suspect.
PlosslF1 (@f1-ploss)
22nd October 2024, 2:04
I remember watching that race and the crash, it was different from this as it was a loss of traction riding the exit curb in Lesmo1, not a loss of the car into a braking zone…
grat
21st October 2024, 1:42
You might be thinking of Istanbul 2006 (GP2). Hamilton begged the team to take every bit of downforce off the car they could, he spun on the opening lap, but finished 2nd in a truly astonishing drive.
rprp
21st October 2024, 6:59
Certainly Hungary 2012 in greasy conditions.
Then there was Brazil 2014, chasing down Rosberg.
rprp
21st October 2024, 7:01
And being harsh there was that really wet German Grand Prix. 2019?
rprp
21st October 2024, 7:02
Or Monaco 2008, which he ended up winning.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
22nd October 2024, 13:53
I wouldn’t call it really wet, but it had changeable conditions, was a very interesting race where everything happened, hamilton was dominating the race until, like many others, he got caught up at the slippery last corner, damaged the front wing and then mercedes, in 70 years celebration mood, decided to do a pit stop in the 1950 style, 50 sec for it, so he ended up much further back, and then spun too in the end and ended outside the points on track, only really got back because someone got dq’d; in his defense, his team mate spun too and retired.
Anthony Tellier
21st October 2024, 10:06
Yeah, but …
Matt (@hollidog)
21st October 2024, 14:35
I was actually thinking of Budapest 2009 but apparently he has spun in quite a few races
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
20th October 2024, 23:56
I wonder why Lewis felt the need to say such thing. As excuses go (valid or not) it’s a weird one.
Ben
21st October 2024, 0:08
sounds like he’s trying to convince himself that he’s not past it. Sadly this year has proved that he is. I hope he can reset and return well with Ferrari, but I fear he won’t.
Leclerc will be a stronger team mate than Russell and he’s struggling really bad right now.
Nick T.
21st October 2024, 4:05
lol, I’m sure you’ve really got your fingers crossed for Lewis. Anyway, American tarmac is prejudiced. That’s why it happened.
If Lewis is competitive with Leclerc at the age he is going to Ferrari at, I think that will be a credit to him. If he beats him, that will add a major check mark on his balance sheet when weighing him against the other GOATs.
ps – Lewis got a massive cheer and the crowd was chanting “Lewis, Lewis, Lewis.” I was surprised he didn’t even give them a wave
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
22nd October 2024, 13:58
Was probably too disappointed.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
22nd October 2024, 14:00
But yes, definitely beating a top driver like leclerc at this age would be an achievement.
Craig
21st October 2024, 8:06
That sounds more like a level of weird wishful thinking then reality. I assume you’ve done everything you can to pretend Silverstone and Spa didn’t happen this year.
Esteban
21st October 2024, 23:26
Surely you jest: The American circuit met all of FIA criteria for DEI.
Nick T.
22nd October 2024, 6:49
Pipe down, bot.
AlanD
21st October 2024, 2:34
His crash was so similar to Russell’s yesterday that it makes me think it is possibly something inherent in the car or the way they were set uop for this track. As I commented yesterday adter Russell’s crash, the car seems to be more on a knife edge than the other contenders, can be blazingly fast one minute and no rear-end grip the next.
Craig
21st October 2024, 8:08
That’s the impression I got and seemed to be an issue all weekend for them. Either the upgrades are duff or need further tuning to stop them being this knife edge, or at least give the drivers more feedback before something goes wrong.
N
21st October 2024, 16:34
and the fact that Russell had to revert to the previous suspension spec for the race and had no problems gives that theory more weight
OOliver
21st October 2024, 6:46
He did ask the team to make changes so he could start from the pitlane but they refused.
Mayrton
21st October 2024, 9:23
Strange indeed. It just confirms lack of self reflection. Situational awareness on and off track is not his strongest point.
Nick T.
21st October 2024, 11:24
Yeah, he’s one of the worst drivers of all time. The WOAT.
I’ll grant you the latter though. There’s no shortage of head scratching sound bites from Louis XLIV.
BenHur
21st October 2024, 0:03
Missing a helpful crane?
Andy (@andycz)
21st October 2024, 0:05
Gust of wind? Maybe Rosberg was blowing something to pay back the 2015 gust…
t1redmonkey (@t1redmonkey)
21st October 2024, 0:08
He’s had a couple of years to forget on the Sunday GP here that’s for sure, DSQ last year, DNF this year.
Oleg
21st October 2024, 0:34
One thing was good for Lewis in this weekend: the car 44 wasn’t destrayed.
In general, I think that Hamilton, who started from the pit lane, as he wanted,
and there was an opportunity for team to make adjustments to the settings of his car,
then there might not have been a departure
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
21st October 2024, 0:50
pretty much time to get the lawyers out at this point. This is beyond ridiculous. Everyone knows they should have fixed his car’s setup. Yes there is a lot of incompetence on his side of the garage due to the spineless race engineer, and the guys knowing hes gone, because Toto had to let everyone know Kimi is replacing him as soon as it was possible.
If you want to win championships, you don’t throw your own drivers under the bus, and Toto the boy who cried Wolff, has been doing that all year to Lewis. pretty sadistic at this point. Like they aren’t even trying to really hide it anymore, the worst possible strategy to benefit his teammate at the sacrifice of even really good championship points for the team itself. Its just bazaar to see Toto’s/Whom ever is leading that team’s clear hatred towards Lewis destroy that team’s potential.
Its beyond incompetence and negligence, its full WeTodd.
AlanD
21st October 2024, 2:41
My post below was meant to be a reply to PCX. What possible benefit would it be to Mercedes to sabotage Hamilton’s race? Do you have anything at all to back up those claims?
Red Pill (@redpill)
21st October 2024, 3:05
This must be sarcasm, right?
Ham is doing fine and it looks like the engineers need to do some more work.
The car (both) looks to be on a very thin knife edge to get any pace out of it right now but very temperamental. Similar to aero/setup issues of last season and not really looking like the same car they have had in the first half of this season and it’s biting back when conditions are not just right. Both drivers have been having issues, and at times quite fast.
Nick T.
21st October 2024, 4:16
maxpc is notorious for attributing everything to conspiracies. Not just Hamilton’s struggles. Even in most of the races Lewis won, he would say on the radio we stopped too early, too late, this is the wrong tire, etc. So, it’s hard to take him seriously when he says “oh, we should have done this instead.” Beyond that, he recently won multiple races. So, it’s clear they’re not trying to sabotage him and that’ll I trust the nearly 1,000 engineers/data analysts to get it right more often than LH.
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
21st October 2024, 7:34
He won at his home race. Which was good for ratings. How is that not in the interest of Formula 1 or Toto ? Right after Toto said he would win a race.
You don’t have to believe in conspiracies, they exist. In fact thats how the world works. People work together to get things done. The idea that conspiracies don’t exist is a mindless fallacy used to shame people who look beyond the oblivious. I am also very particular with my speech, and provide cause/reason for my rantings (and some might say ravings).
Formula 1 is a TV product, owned by Liberty MEDIA. This isn’t Bernie or what proceeded Pirelli. This is something completely different. And its VERY MANAGED and highly produced.
Sandwhichands
21st October 2024, 8:06
If you think it’s like wrestling do you see yourself as a smart mark?
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
22nd October 2024, 14:06
Yes, you’re on to something for sure, think about the masi incident too, most likely it was someone higher up who wanted the championship decided on the last lap, to increase viewership.
AlanD
21st October 2024, 2:37
I really don’t think Mercedes would be trying to damage Hamilton’s race. Where are you getting your info from? (and please don’t say it’s obvious).
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
21st October 2024, 7:30
The lawyers are in case Hamilton has cause for negligence/malfeasance or performance related clauses. Because that’s the only thing that will convince Toto to ensure HAM’s side of the garage stops screwing up. I related above in a brief essay about what is going on, but suffice it to say, the root cause of HAM’s woes are Toto’s leadership and him steering the morale and efforts of HAM’s side of the garage in to the deep dives.
There is no overt sabotaging, because you don’t need to. All you have to do is stop trying. And it’s clear based on the calls from the last two races, that they are sending Lewis off on to high risk, low payout solutions. Which makes no sense unless you really don’t care. And this is Toto’s fault 100%, and a clear case of poor leadership and negligence.
AlanD
21st October 2024, 14:17
PCX: “And it’s clear based on the calls from the last two races”
You know, when I said “please don’t say it is obvious”, I didn’t mean you were to find a synonym for obvious.
notagrumpyfan
21st October 2024, 8:16
For pcxmac anything but a landslide win is an obvious conspiracy against Hamilton ;)
grat
21st October 2024, 20:23
I don’t think they deliberately sabotaged, but Russell spun out in qualifying with the new bits. They rebuilt his car with the old parts. Hamilton wanted to start from the pitlane, after reverting his car to the older spec parts– and spun out after two laps.
The new parts seem to be unstable.
wsrgo (@wsrgo)
21st October 2024, 3:14
2009 Italian gp. Spun off into the wall on the last lap, from 3rd.
I don’t know why a man with a self-admitted bad memory, would make statements like these.
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
21st October 2024, 7:40
Hamilton said he wasn’t pushing, clearly he was haulting it around that corner and unsettled the car off the curbing. Pretty sure HAM wasn’t pushing it at COTA, and his front wheel was hopping around, which unsettled the rear and spun him out.
One was induced by a bad setup, which MERC clearly chose to ignore by keeping him at the back of the grid instead of starting him in the pits, and inspecting / changing his setup for the race ; The other was on old tires, hauling it through a turn.
HAM’s main concern was that we was paying attention, and he was clear to say that in the post race interview, because thats what that kind of crash is about, when people look off in to the distance, but thats not the case, the case was front corner was hopping up and down, because MERC failed to fix his car after they botched his setup in qualifying.
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
21st October 2024, 7:41
clearly he was haulting it around that corner and unsettled the car off the curbing. (Monza)
Armchair Expert (@armchairexpert)
21st October 2024, 5:38
So it was The Ghost of Rosberg who was responsible for Hamilton’s spin, just like in Baku ’21 it was The Finger causing pressing the wrong button and overshooting the first corner at the restart.
David
21st October 2024, 7:53
Aside from the British GP win – which was a great moment – this has been a season of decline for Lewis.
Ferrari must be getting very nervous about the driver they’re going to get next year.
Applebook
21st October 2024, 9:01
I don’t think that Ferrari is shocked by what’s been happening this year. Unless they are complete fools, they didn’t bring Lewis to be a champion. They brought him for marketing, as Leclerc is clearly their present and their future. Qualifying next year against Charles should be hilarious at most tracks like Monaco and Baku.
Nick T.
21st October 2024, 9:49
I doubt it. I think they’d be fine if Lewis was at Sainz’s level or even just fractionally slower. That way they wouldn’t have to deal with the stress of two number ones taking points off each other while still getting to enjoy the massive amount of sponsors he’s going to bring, the boatloads of Hamilton branded Ferrari gear they’re going to sell, etc.
Which brings me to another point: there’s a vocal contingent who keep talking about what a shame it is Sainz has lost his seat to “washed” Hamilton or in the terms of actually objective fans rather just malicious anti-Hams, how Lewis might be a down grade, byr look at the points gap between Leclerc and Sainz. It’s bigger than the gap between Lando and Max. The most Sainz can do is usually hassle Leclerc for a while or, on the odd off weekend for Charles, inherit the position he would normally finish in. So, unless Lewis is in the beginning of a major collapse rather than just a gradual decline and/or the Merc just really confounding him, the worst that happens is Lewis basically picks up where Sainz left off.
Frank
21st October 2024, 10:37
I fully agree. If he outperforms Leclerc, that is obviously a huge win for Ferrari. Given what Leclerc is already doing with that car this year, improving on that would be at least a decent title shot.
If Leclerc is better, Ferrari still get the marketing bonus AND a massively confident Leclerc – which might also result in a title shot.
For Hamilton. If he beats, or even just matches, Leclerc at his age, that would be a huge boost to his legacy. If he falls short, people can still assume that he would have beaten him in his pump.
For Leclerc, it is less clear-cut. I would say that he at least has to compare favourably to Russell vs Hamilton.
Nick T.
21st October 2024, 11:35
That’s a good point about the Leclerc confidence aspect. I think you’re right. Maybe it’ll help instill more of the killer instinct too. As for the inverse scenario, I think that depends on what that looks like. If say the car is great and they nab 12 wins (just a random figure) and Lewis has 7 and Leclerc 5, I don’t think it’d do any real damage. However, if the team is just good and Hamilton beats him on points, I think Leclerc would get marked down a full tier.
Above all, agreed on the legacy aspect. I recently said the same thing nearly word-for-word. It’d be a big chip in his favor when it comes to discussing F1’s GOATs. It’s why I’m incredibly interested to see what happens.
Oleg
21st October 2024, 10:08
And yet it is strange such outrage in the comments from those who follow Hamilton’s career
so closely that they remember all his problems…
He had 351 starts in races and after last USA race now there are 32 incidents in them.
Well, that’s less than 10%. And of these 32, only 1 is listed as a “Runway exit”.
Other reason retirement was:
Retirement – Amount
Accident – 2
Brakes – 2
Collision – 10
Engine – 3
Fuel pressure – 2
Gearbox – 2
Handling – 3
Hydraulics – 1
Pile-up – 2
Puncture – 1
Runway exit – 1
Throttle – 1
Transmission – 1
Undertray – 1
So Hamilton is technically right.
Craig
21st October 2024, 11:08
The retirement that always stood out to me was the Spanish GP 2010 when his wheel rim failed on the penultimate lap, mainly as he was on the radio at the time so you got his reaction live (something you rarely get)
Drg
21st October 2024, 17:30
Funny thing – he pretty much lost the championship there..
Craig
21st October 2024, 23:03
It was too early in the season to be the defacto reason he lost the championship (I’m sure he led it at some stage later that year but can’t remember when exactly) but it wouldn’t have helped.
Oleg
22nd October 2024, 13:07
2010 Ranking after Belgian GP (13th, 29/08/2010)
Driver – Team – Points
1. Hamilton – McLaren – 182
2. Webber – Red Bull-Renault – 179
3. Vettel – Red Bull-Renault – 151
4. Button – McLaren – 147
5. Alonso – Ferrari – 141
6. Massa – Ferrari – 109
7. Kubica – Renault – 104
8. Rosberg – Mercedes – 102
9. Sutil – Force India-Mercedes – 45
10. Schumacher – Mercedes – 44
After that was:
– 6 races: 3 wins Alonso and 3 wins Vettel
Hamilton retirements:
– Monza due to transmission,
– Singapoure due to collision vs Webber and puncture rear tyre
And total 2010 Ranking
Driver – Team – Points
1. Vettel – Red Bull-Renault – 256
2. Alonso – Ferrari – 252
3. Webber – Red Bull-Renault – 242
4. Hamilton – McLaren – 240
5. Button – McLaren – 214
6. Massa – Ferrari – 144
7. Rosberg – Mercedes – 142
8. Kubica – Renault – 136
9. Schumacher – Mercedes – 72
10. Bariccelo – Williams – 47
Craig
24th October 2024, 16:57
@Oleg cheers
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
22nd October 2024, 14:18
Wow, didn’t realise he lost the championship for that (wasn’t following the vettel era), that’s sad.
Oleg
21st October 2024, 11:33
And for objective view there is comparison with other active World Champions of F1
Alonso 396 starts 76 retirements (19,19%) (including Runway exit – 2, Spin – 2)
Verstappen 204 starts 32 retirements (15,69%) (including Runway exit – 1)
And with Hamilton’s present teammate:
Russel 123 starts 19 retirements (15,45%)
And with Hamilton’s future teammate:
Lecler 142 starts 21 retirements (14,79%)
Nick T.
21st October 2024, 11:46
Unless you also detail the amount of technical retirements that make up those stats, it’s pretty useless since Max (while teammates with Daniel) and Alonso had multiple seasons with cars that broke literally all the time. Alonso had multiple seasons at McLaren where it was a miracle if the PU lasted the entire race. In 2022, his car broke down while in the points more than 7 times + a DNS.
TBC, my point has nothing to do with Hamilton who has been one of the least error prone drivers ever. It’s just easy for surface level stats to lie, especially in F1. For example, Grosjean wiping out Lewis and Alonso + others would appear as a retirement due to collision despite it being down to neither of them.
Oleg
22nd October 2024, 13:18
I agree that statistics are pseudoscience.
But there is no other more objective way to compare something over
a long period of time and with a large amount of data.
And so it is clear that it is necessary to sort out each individual case.
At the same time, we will still run into an endless discussion: who is more to blame.
Oleg
22nd October 2024, 13:21
I was just trying to show that Hamilton’s accusations of lying
in the comments to this article are somewhat exaggerated
Oleg
21st October 2024, 19:02
Hamilton after qualify said that want start in pit lane due to needing change settings on his car.
But Russell’s crash in qualify changed Hamilton’s plan.
And it is also reason Hamilton retirement in the race