Hamilton: ‘Terrible’ season continues with poor finish in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS — Lewis Hamilton had every reason to feel good about his effort this Saturday night, but as a seven-time Formula 1 champion, his burden for moral victories is high.

So even though he quickly moved from the back of the pack at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, even moving up to fifth midway through the 50-lap race, Hamilton rested little to finish eighth.

It was, no matter how he got there, another loss.

“I feel terrible, terrible,” Hamilton said. “It’s been the worst season for me. No matter how hard I try, it just keeps getting worse.”

He crossed the line in 10th but gained two positions when Lando Norris and Oscar Pastry were disqualified.

Hamilton came looking for answers at the weekend after his much-hyped move from Mercedes to Ferrari fell short of expectations in the English driver’s first season with the team.

He has not won this season, and neither has team-mate Charles Leclerc, who drew the ire of Ferrari executive chairman John Elkin after a particularly disappointing race two weeks ago when both drivers failed to finish the Brazilian Grand Prix.

“It’s important that our drivers focus on driving and talk less,” Elkin said.

Ferrari fell from second to fourth in the constructors’ standings in Brazil, where the team remains with two events to go after Las Vegas. The chain moves to Qatar and then ends in the United Arab Emirates.

Elkin couldn’t have been happier with the way the Las Vegas race started for Hamilton. He qualified Friday night in 20th and final place. Hamilton wound up 19th after Yuki Sonoda was found to have made changes when no one was allowed to.

“It was a really disappointing qualifying session,” Hamilton said shortly afterwards. “After (practice session number 3), I felt that our car had good pace, but the wet conditions did not work in our favor today. Visibility was poor and unfortunately we were stopped by some yellow flags, which meant that I could not put together a decent lap in my last three attempts.

Hamilton’s disappointing results have even fueled speculation as to whether the 40-year-old should retire.

With seven titles, he is tied with Michael Schumacher for the record and Hamilton is first in victories (105) and podium appearances (202). Hamilton was particularly dominant between 2017 and 2020, winning four championships in a row, the last three seasons ending with 11 victories each.

It’s the biggest stuff, a conversation in which Hamilton firmly planted himself.

But then it all started to fall apart after what would be a record eighth championship at the end of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix season. Hamilton was tipped to win the race, but a series of controversial incidents helped Max Verstappen win, who has not let go of the title since winning the last four.

Mercedes and Hamilton protested that the result in Abu Dhabi was of no use.

Whether the result went to his head or there were other factors at play, Hamilton hasn’t been the same since. The driver who posted six double-digit seasons failed to cross the finish line first in 2022 and 2023.

He eventually achieved the same wins as last year in England and Belgium, but finished seventh in the standings, actually one step back from third in 2023. It was also his last season at Mercedes, and a move to Ferrari offered hopes of rekindling his career.

After failing to win a race this year, Hamilton has yet to make the top three or take pole position. He has only had one pole over the past four years.

No wonder Hamilton, even on a night when he was out of the car more than expected, was still looking for answers.

“I’m trying everything, everything,” Hamilton said. “In and out of the car.”