Lewis Hamilton has apologised to his Ferrari team for his costly decision to override their strategy call during the Singapore Grand Prix.
Hamilton was running third behind team-mate Charles Leclerc on lap 39 of 62 when a Virtual Safety Car appeared, offering the perfect opportunity to change tyres. Ferrari told Hamilton to follow Leclerc into the pits, but he ignored the call and stayed out. He finished sixth after being overtaken by Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli and McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the closing stages.
On team radio after the chequered flag, Hamilton said: "Sorry boys. I let you down today with that strategy. My call, and I lost us valuable points." The result left him 111 points behind championship leader Antonelli, while his advantage over race winner Max Verstappen was cut to just eight points.
Hamilton took responsibility in a team statement, explaining that he had chosen a new medium tyre to attempt a one-stop, but it failed to perform like the soft. He said he missed the pit entry under the VSC, then struggled with tyre degradation in the final laps. Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur confirmed the pit wall's call was clear, noting Hamilton was also losing a likely podium.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing