Lewis Hamilton Sparks Concern with Post-Brazil GP Qualifying Interview

Lewis Hamilton was dejected and downbeat after a disastrous Sao Paulo sprint qualifying session continued his woes with Ferrari.

The Formula One season continues with the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday, with drivers taking part in sprint qualifying on Friday ahead of the main event at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace.

World championship leader Lando Norris secured the pole position, finishing ahead of Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli by 0.097 seconds and 0.185secs in front of McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, who took third place.

Max Verstappen dropped down to sixth after a disappointing race, but it was Hamilton who endured the most frustration.

Hamilton finished in 11th having being knocked out of SQ2 - failing to make it to the line in time after teammate Charles Leclerc spun out him on Turn 10 in the final lap of his second session.

Appearing full of disappointment on his team radio, Hamilton spoke after the race and was visibly crestfallen as he reflected on his struggles.

"Ay ay ay," Hamilton began before laughing while speaking to Sky Sports.

"It’s not for the lack of trying. The team thought we were a lot faster than we are. Gave it everything and that’s ultimately what matters most - we were just not quick enough."

He added: "I'm 11th now so... I think at this point, it's literally just about having fun. It's not going well from my side in the year and ... yeah, I just have to just enjoy it wherever I am. That's all I can do."

The seven-time world champion, who is without a key member of his team after his engineer's departure, has failed to get going in his maiden season with Ferrari and not for the first time, his fan expressed concerns.

One on X wrote: "That's the laugh of a man in pain not wanting to disappoint his fans."

A second said: "That laugh is giving 'What else is new?' Can the season end already. Ferrari ruined our lives."

A third user predicted: "He’s going back to Merc."

A fourth stated: "I never thought this season could end this bad."

Hamilton learns of FIA verdict

Hamilton was the subject of an investigation for a potential yellow flag infringement in relation to the incident with Leclerc, who he drove past without an attempt to slow down despite yellow flags being waved.

He and a Ferrari representative were summoned to a meeting by the FIA stewards but Hamilton avoided a penalty and was instead issued a reprimand - with a full explanation given in a statement.

"Towards the end of Q2, Car 16 (LEC) spun at the exit of Turn 10, triggering double waved yellow flags,” the FIA statement read.

“Shortly afterwards, Car 44 (HAM) approached the same corner and was just turning in when the double yellow light panels were activated on the left-hand side of the track.

“During the hearing, HAM explained that he did not see the light signal. The onboard footage confirms that the signal was only illuminated for a fraction of a second before HAM passed it.

As the driver’s focus was clearly on the turn-in-point, he was looking to the right-hand side of the track, thus the Stewards find it credible that he did not actually perceive the signal.

“However, HAM acknowledged during the hearing that he saw Car 16 (LEC) stationary at the side of the track and could see a green light signal being displayed beyond that point. He therefore had to realise that he was at least in a yellow sector and as a consequence had to reduce speed discernibly.

“Looking into the telemetry, the Stewards found that the driver reacted by hesitating whilst applying the throttle, but did not reduce speed as required.

“In similar circumstances in the past, the Stewards have deemed it appropriate to impose a reprimand rather than the standard five-place grid penalty specified in the guidelines.

“In terms of consistency, the Stewards consider a reprimand to be sufficient in this case as well.”