Wolff apologises to Hamilton after Q1 crash in Abu Dhabi: 'We completely let him down'

This is certainly not how Lewis Hamilton et Mercedes dreamed of starting their last weekend together, after 12 years of collaboration. The seven-time world champion was caught out in qualifying on Saturday, eliminated in Q1 in 18th position (16th on the grid thanks to penalties), on the eve of his last Grand Prix after the Silver Arrows. A premature elimination at the end of a rather strange Q1 for the Briton, who was not helped by his team…

At the start of the session, Lewis Hamilton went out for the first time on… hard tyres, to break in his rubber for the race. A sighting lap that inevitably cost him time: after a first stop in the pits to put on soft tyres, Lewis Hamilton set an average first time, in 10th place, being among the last to record a time. The time lost at the start of the session was especially detrimental in the final minutes of Q1: forced to go out among the last, Lewis Hamilton had to get out of traffic throughout his lap. To top it all off, the Englishman picked up a pin under his flat bottom, detached by Kevin Magnussen inside Turn 14, which cost him dearly from an aerodynamic performance point of view.

IT'S ALREADY OVER FOR LEWIS HAMILTON 🤯🤯🤯

18th position for the Briton for his last qualifying session with Mercedes, hampered by a cone on his fast lap...#AbuDhabiGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/uSZph5FTY9

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) December 7, 2024

Hamilton could have played for the podium, recognizes Wolff

At the end of the qualifications, Toto wolff apologized profusely to his driver and admitted that the strategy adopted by Mercedes was too risky. "I just have to apologise to Lewis and everyone in the team who worked hard to give him a great ending, said the Team Principal of the German team. He was the quickest with the type of set-up we had on the car, [which was] also an experiment for next year, and we completely dropped him. It was a stupid mistake not to come out earlier. Inexcusable. I have rarely been so depressed by what happened. Maybe that sums up the last few races we had with him, but that is the worst part because… it was just stupid.

“We were lucky that [Hamilton and Russell] both managed to get through the other cars. And then maybe without the pin it would have worked… But you don’t take that many risks in a Q1 where we easily had the pace to get there, concedes the Austrian leader, dejected. And here we have our most valuable driver of all time, the most valuable and greatest driver in the sport, going out in Q1 because we made a mistake. A dilettante mistake that doesn't ruin the legacy we have with him, but I can only apologise to him."

Lewis Hamilton will therefore start his last Grand Prix with Mercedes from a sad and distant 16th place this Sunday in Abu Dhabi. A sad end for the man who won 84 victories and clinched 78 pole positions with the brand with the Star in Formula 1. The Briton will have to work hard if he wants to end his adventure with Mercedes on a good note. According to Toto Wolff, the seven-time world champion possibly had the pace to play at the front before his disappointment in Q1. "His pace was there. We could have had a podium, I think. He was third this morning [in Free Practice 3]. And now it's almost impossible knowing where he's starting from."

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