Lewis Hamilton penalized three places on the grid at Zandvoort
The Mercedes driver was found guilty of obstructing Sergio Pérez in Q1.
Tough day for Lewis Hamilton in the Netherlands. The recent winner of the British and Belgian Grand Prix was first eliminated in Q2 before being penalized for impeding a competitor.
While his teammate George Russell managed to secure a spot on the second row of the starting grid alongside Oscar Piastri’s McLaren, Hamilton did not manage to make it past the second part of the qualifying session, even though his Mercedes seemed capable of keeping up with the McLarens.
Misfortunes never come alone, the future Ferrari driver has been penalized three places for obstructing Sergio Perez in Q1, with the Mexican not hesitating to call the British driver an idiot.
So in a quick turn, Perez’s Red Bull had to slow down as it approached Hamilton’s Mercedes in turn 9 of the Zandvoort circuit. Hamilton had indeed opened up his line to let his competitor pass by placing himself off the racing line but the stewards decided otherwise.
Ranked 12th, Hamilton will start from the 15th position on the grid on Sunday.
