Lewis Hamilton's Austrian GP Sprint Qualifying Nightmare: What Went Wrong and What's Next
Formula 1 fans were left bewildered as Lewis Hamilton struggled through Sprint Qualifying at the Austrian Grand Prix, ultimately landing a precarious sixth place. Despite showing promise during practice, the seven-time World Champion found himself grappling with a series of disappointing laps when it mattered most.
Hamilton’s day began with optimism as he finished the sole practice session as the fastest driver not using Soft tires. But that early pace vanished in the blink of an eye. In the first stage of qualifying, a hair-raising moment at Turn 1 sent him sliding through the gravel, forcing him to abandon his initial attempt. His second run did little to mitigate the damage, placing him in a shaky position.
Though he advanced to the final stage, Hamilton’s single effort for pole position fell short, clocking in two places and two-tenths behind Mercedes teammate George Russell. “It wasn’t in the mix at all, the whole session was pretty disastrous from my point of view,” Hamilton lamented, summarizing his woes succinctly.
Despite showing potential in practice, Hamilton admitted that pole position was always out of reach. “What can I say, practice felt good, the car generally felt good. I don’t think we had the pace obviously to be on pole, but yeah, very bad laps,” he reflected.
Adding salt to the wound, Hamilton expressed skepticism about making significant advances during the race. “Who knows, I don’t think overtaking is mega here, but we’ll give it our best,” he noted. With overtaking opportunities expected to be minimal, his focus is now firmly on securing a better grid position for the main Grand Prix. “It’s usually not such an eventful race, so I think the focus will be mostly on getting a better qualifying tomorrow,” he added.
Meanwhile, George Russell, who had shown glimpses of brilliance in SQ2 as the closest competitor to polesitter Max Verstappen, was left equally puzzled. Missing out on a top-three spot, Russell reflected on his performance. “It felt really good to be honest,” he said. “The start felt really good to be honest, and my lap felt really strong.”
However, Russell revealed that he may have overdone it during his out-lap, draining critical life from his tires. “I was pretty surprised at the gap, but I think I probably over-egged it on my out-laps,” he admitted. “That’s the only explanation I’ve got at the moment, because the lap felt strong, probably the best lap of the session for me. Yet, it was quite a step backwards, so P4, still a great place to be for the fight tomorrow.”
Looking ahead, Russell remains optimistic about challenging the McLarens in the Sprint race. His satisfaction stems from Mercedes’ visible strides forward. “Definitely fighting for [a] podium, I think tomorrow in the Sprint,” Russell said, his confidence palpable. “Obviously, eyes on the main race is the most important, but validation again that we’re kind of in this mix now. Probably a bit ahead of Ferrari at the moment, McLaren still seem to be a small step ahead, but it’s nice to be at the front end a bit more consistently.”
As Hamilton and Russell gear up for the main race, the pressure is on for Mercedes to convert their promise into performance. Will Hamilton bounce back from his Sprint Qualifying woes, or will Russell seize the momentum? Only time will tell as the Austrian Grand Prix promises to keep fans on the edge of their seats.