Hamilton assesses Mexico City GP penalty as Ferrari label it ‘harsh’

Lewis Hamilton was left visibly disappointed after being hit with a penalty during the Mexico City Grand Prix following a battle with Max Verstappen, a sanction Ferrari believes was "harsh" as the seven-time World Champion finished eighth.

During a frantic opening stint in Mexico, Hamilton was defending third place from Verstappen in a gripping battle on the sixth lap. In a quickfire sequence, the Red Bull driver dove to the inside of Turn 1, making contact – deemed fair by the stewards – before cutting across the grass to return to the track ahead of Hamilton, beyond the exit of Turn 3.

Attempting to repass Verstappen, Hamilton pulled alongside on the entry to Turn 4, locked up, and cut across the grass after being unable to stick to the prescribed escape road. The Ferrari man eventually rejoined ahead of his rival, while the Haas of Ollie Bearman pounced to pass Verstappen himself and move into fourth place.

However, the stewards would later hit Hamilton with a 10-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in his battle with Verstappen, with the seven-time World Champion having to serve it as he made his first pit stop of the race.

In the end, a race where a first Grand Prix podium for Ferrari seemed to be on the cards ended with the Briton coming home in eighth.

Offering his thoughts on his race and the penalty, Hamilton said: “It was fun at the start and didn’t end up the way I had hoped, but it's motor racing.”

Pressed whether he could have done more to stick to the escape road in his battle with Verstappen, he added: “No. It’s very dirty offline, and I did the best I could to bring the car back to the track safely, and that’s all I could hope for.”

Ferrari Team Principal Fred Vasseur appeared to accept Hamilton’s penalty in principle, but not its severity.

“The penalty for Lewis, I think it is a bit harsh,” said Vasseur after the race. “For sure, he didn’t keep the line until the end, but he lost the car on the grass and it was not easy to maintain. But 10 seconds is very harsh, because this dropped us behind all the group, and we lost six or seven positions, but it is like it is.”

As for whether a maiden podium in Ferrari colours could have been on the cards for Hamilton without the penalty, he added: “It’s difficult to predict and to know, but he was in front of Bearman, and if he got five seconds, he was still in the group behind with the two Mercedes.”