[ad_1]
Lewis Hamilton wanted the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix to be ‘stopped’ on Sunday before finishing seventh in the standings.
Britain went into this competition due to poor performance in qualifying.
And although Hamilton did well to close the gap on some of his rivals, he was still nowhere near the likes of Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc.
The start of the race in Vegas was chaotic, with the AI Virtual Safety Car deployed after several incidents at the first corner.
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton performed well at Las Vegas Grand Prix but could not compete with Max Verstappen
getty
Hamilton made contact with another car and lost considerable time as a result.
Neither the Mercedes star nor his team-mate George Russell chose to drive in the pits after the crash with Lando Norris.
However, both men were worried about getting stuck behind the safety car on the slippery new surface in Nevada.
And Hamilton’s radio message, which was missed by TV cameras at the time, has come to light.
The Stevenage-born racer was heard saying: “There is no catch here.
“This speed is so slow it’s dangerous for us. They either have to speed it up or stop.”
Russell also expressed his concerns, with the 25-year-old being heard saying: “The tire temperatures are dropping like stones here.
“The safety car really needs to move forward a bit.”
However, Hamilton and Russell’s fears did not come to fruition and both men managed to finish the race.
Verstappen finished on top, with Leclerc in second and Sergio Pérez in third.
The event got off to a disastrous start in Vegas on Friday when P1 was abandoned after just nine minutes.
Fans were asked to leave the stands before P2, resulting in race organizers now facing potential lawsuits.
However, Hamilton was happy with the way the race went and he criticized critics, including Verstappen, speaking afterwards.
,[There were] “There were a lot of great overtaking opportunities,” he told Sky Sports.
“And I think for everyone who was so negative about the weekend, saying it was all about the show blah blah blah, I think Vegas proved them wrong.”
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff also spoke and praised the Vegas GP, although he suggested he would make some changes.
“Not his fault. It’s sad to say that another time we had the momentum but it didn’t work out,” the Austrian said.
“I wouldn’t change much [about the Vegas GP],
“I would probably move qualifying from midnight to 10pm, like the race start.
“So you can still keep the roads open long hours in Vegas and have dinners for fans. Plus, it was a perfect event.
Latest F1 News:
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton was happy with the way the race went in Las Vegas on Sunday
getty
“We saw fast pace today. I think we can bounce back as expected and score a solid podium.”
Hamilton will now be eyeing victory at next weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
The British have won in the Middle Eastern country five times before, with their first win coming in 2011.
However, Verstappen will be the man to beat, with the Red Bull driver having won in Abu Dhabi on three previous occasions.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25093144/https___cdn.sanity.io_images_xq1bjtf4_production_e8d51dadc7b01374e498728d272484a95f5ef86a_6000x4000.jpg)
