Lewis Hamilton Decision Branded 'Disgraceful' as Ferrari Miss Italian GP Pole

Ferrari fans were left scratching their heads after Italian Grand Prix qualifying as the home team seemingly missed a clear opportunity to gain an advantage on their rivals.

Ferrari hopes were high heading into qualifying that they could challenge for pole position at their home race in Monza.

But Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton could only finish fourth and fifth respectively in qualifying.

World champion Max Verstappen claimed an impressive pole, finishing ahead of the two McLarens - with Lando Norris set to start Sunday's Grand Prix from second and championship leader Oscar Piastri third.

While it was not a disastrous result for Ferrari, fans of the Italian team believe they missed an opportunity to get Leclerc on pole position by using teammate Hamilton.

The British driver will start the race with a five-place grid penalty from last Sunday's Dutch Grand Prix, where he was penalised for not slowing sufficiently under double-waved yellow flags.

Hamilton will start the Italian GP from tenth on the grid (Image: Getty)

As a result, Hamilton was expected to provide a tow for Leclerc in qualifying, particularly on the back straight that leads to the Parabolica.

However, Ferrari didn't adopt this tactic during qualifying - to the disbelief of fans on social media.

"You are so scared to offend Hamilton that you didn't use him to give a tow when it was impossible for him to be on pole due to the penalty," posted one furious Ferrari supporter.

Another added: "Why wasn't Hamilton ordered to help Leclerc, to give him a tow?"

While a third wrote: "Ferrari sucking up to Hamilton is a disgrace! Giving no tow to Leclerc despite knowing he has a five place grid penalty..."

Speaking after qualifying, Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur was asked if a tow was a viable option during the session.

"It was, but the correct decision was to prepare the outlap properly. We saw in other Grand Prix how important it was," he said.

When asked if Leclerc had asked for the tow, Vasseur added: "No, he understood why it wasn't possible."

What is a 'tow' in F1?

A tow, also known as a slipstream, is when one car drives closely behind another - usually on a straight - allowing them to go faster because of the low air pressure left behind the first car.

Drivers will often do this during a race to generate excess speed that can then be used to overtake the car in front.

During qualifying and races, teammates can help each other by providing a 'tow' for the other car - giving it an advantage that is sometimes worth as much as several tenths of a second.

Hamilton was expected to give Charles Leclerc a tow in qualifying (Image: Getty)

What has Lewis Hamilton said?

Speaking ahead of qualifying, Hamilton said he would be "happy" to be "sacrificed" for Leclerc if that was Ferrari's decision.

"I know that Ferrari used to do it many years ago," he said.

"I remember when I started, I noticed Kimi [Raikkonen] and Felipe [Massa] used to do that often.

"It can be beneficial, but in my past, it felt like there was more risk, and often one person had to be sacrificed for it, so I’m not sure whether they will do that.

"But if it meant getting Charles there, then I would be happy to play that role."