Lewis Hamilton, who finished sixth in the rain-delayed Dutch Grand Prix for Mercedes, claims he had the speed to challenge race winner Max Verstappen. After a poor showing in qualifying, Hamilton fought back on Sunday to improve his starting position from 13th to sixth. However, the race for the seven-time world champion might have been much better if he and Mercedes weren't on the wrong end of an early pitstop decision. The rain started shortly after the Zandvoort race, and Mercedes drivers stayed out for an extended period on slicks, which was a mistake as track conditions worsened. Hamilton went first with the mediums, which was a bad call once the rain began. Neither driver was called in by the team at the beginning of the race, allowing Russell to pass Norris and take the lead before Verstappen went in for inters.
F1 Dutch Grand Prix: Hamiton Thoughts on Zandvoort Race
After finishing sixth and seventeenth, respectively, in this weekend's Dutch GP for Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were left to wonder what may have been. While everyone else on the grid opted for the soft tyres, Hamilton, who was starting 13th, decided to go with the mediums. However, after the first lap, rain started falling on the track, and several drivers opted to switch to intermediates. However, Hamilton was not one of these drivers, as he continued on the slicks despite the weather for two further circuits before finally coming in.
Hamilton in his post-race interview said, "I didn’t really know how today was going to go – last night, I was wracking my brain about where we went wrong in qualifying and how we ended up P13, and how to climb back up. I wanted to start the race on an offset tyre compound, but then it turned out I was the only one in the field on a different tyre – and then the rain came. As a team, we made the wrong decision and paid the price, coming out last."
"I was really happy…. I got past the McLaren for example which on this track was not easy to do. I was quicker than Sainz at the end just needed DRS.” Asked what the outcome could have been had they made their right decisions, Hamilton responded: “I think today, in those conditions, if we had made the right call, I had the pace to be challenging the top two. I think we would’ve been challenging Max [Verstappen] if I’m really honest. Particularly when we got to the dry, pace-wise, we weren’t terribly far off. But, not saying we would beat them, but I think we would’ve been... It’s all nice if you think that way," he added.
F1 Dutch Grand Prix: Daniel Ricciardo Formula 1 Return Date Remains Unconfirmed
After having surgery on his fractured hand, Daniel Ricciardo will be unable to compete in this weekend's Italian Grand Prix. Due to the impact and subsequent movement of the steering wheel, Ricciardo broke the metacarpal in his left hand on Friday during the second practice for the Dutch Grand Prix at Turn 3. After Ricciardo was injured on Saturday, Liam Lawson finished out the weekend in Zandvoort and will do so again next week at the Italian Grand Prix.
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Due to rumours around Sergio Perez's future and uncertainties about who will be at AlphaTauri next year, Ricciardo's injury has offered Lawson a chance to shine. As of the season-ending doubleheader at Suzuka in October, Lawson, a previous driver in Formula 3 and Formula 2, is in second place in the Japanese Super Formula Championship. The Kiwi has not actually driven an F1 vehicle in 2022, but he has participated in three practice sessions for Red Bull and AlphaTauri. After a thrilling closing 10 laps in the rain, he finished 13th overall and ahead of AlphaTauri teammate Yuki Tsunoda in his first race.
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