Ferrari left 'completely blind' by Lewis Hamilton car fault that ruined his Silverstone race

Lewis Hamilton was forced to settle for a fourth-placed finish at Sunday’s British Grand Prix, ending the race five seconds behind Nico Hulkenberg in third as he drove 'completely blind' at Silverstone.

Hamilton had secured a podium finish at every Silverstone race since 2014, an extraordinary run that ended over the rain-soaked weekend.

The Ferrari driver lost multiple places during a deluge on lap 12 but recovered to chase Hulkenberg down, though it wasn’t enough for the former Mercedes poster boy. Ferrari’s undercut attempt on lap 41 as Hamilton switched to slick tyres didn’t pay off, but there was another reason for the 40-year-old’s failure to podium.

While it’s easy to keep track of a car during a Formula One race, a car fault left Ferrari ‘completely blind’ at Silverstone. Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has outlined that losing the GPS data thwarted Hamilton’s chances of finishing inside the top three.

“We lost the GPS of Lewis all the race,” Vasseur said. “It means that we are completely blind and didn’t know where the car was. It was a difficult one.”

Lewis Hamilton finished fourth at Silverstone on Sunday. (Image: Getty)

GPS data plays a critical role in modern F1 cars, as a driver’s specific position on the track allows the team to plot pit strategies.

As such, Vasseur has admitted that they brought Hamilton into the pits one lap too early, which ultimately proved costly.

“I think you can say now that it was probably one lap too early, also because he went straight in Turns 3-4 and lost four or five seconds in these two corners,” the Ferrari chief added.

Ferrari and Hamilton's stuttering start to 2025

Ferrari and Hamilton have endured a rocky start to life together after the latter left Mercedes for the former for the start of the 2025 season to replace Carlos Sainz Jr for the iconic manufacturer.

The Ferrari driver has previously spoken of the difficulty of driving the car in wet conditions, and will speak with designers to ensure relevant improvements are made ahead of the 2026 season.

Hamilton’s fourth-placed finish on Sunday means he is now sixth in the Drivers’ Championship on 103 points, 131 points behind leader Oscar Piastri.

However, Hamilton did close the gap on teammate Charles Leclerc to 16 points over the weekend, the 27-year-old currently fifth with 119 points.

Hamilton has spoken of the difficulty of driving Ferrari in wet conditions. (Image: Getty)

McLaren dominating

Ferrari, meanwhile, are second in the Constructors’ standings with 222 points, but they lost ground on McLaren, who are now way out ahead on 460 points after Lando Norris claimed first at Silverstone, with Piastri following his teammate in second.

There is now a three-week break between races, with the drivers now looking ahead to the Belgian grand prix at the end of the month.