‘It was a mistake’ – Vasseur reacts to Hamilton’s strategy call that ‘lost a podium’ in Singapore

Fred Vasseur conceded that Lewis Hamilton made a “mistake” in his decision to stay out under the Virtual Safety Car during the Singapore Grand Prix, with the Ferrari Team Principal explaining that the split-second call cost the Briton a podium.

Hamilton led Leclerc in a 2-3 finish in the Singapore Sprint before the duo swapped places in Qualifying, setting up a perfect opportunity for Ferrari to divide their strategies and challenge Red Bull’s Max Verstappen for victory.

While Leclerc enjoyed a strong opening stint on the grippier soft tyres, Hamilton struggled for pace on his mediums and pitted just 19 laps in, moving back into the top three as the race progressed.

Leclerc had enough of a margin to switch out his tyres and remain ahead of his team mate, which the 41-year-old was not best pleased about as he was instructed to back off and manage his degradation.

However, when the chance arose to pit again under the Virtual Safety Car, Hamilton rejected Ferrari’s offer of a double stack and opted to continue on his aging tyres instead of following his team mate in.

That left him vulnerable as his pace continued to fall away over the final laps, and it didn’t take long for Kimi Antonelli and the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to all power past, demoting him to P6 at the chequered flag.

“The call was to pit [two drivers at the VSC] and Lewis decided to stay on track,” Vasseur confirmed to F1 TV after the race.

“I think it was a mistake overall – we would’ve gone for P2 and P3 today. He apologised on the in-lap for the strategy. We asked him to call and he didn’t.”

“Sorry boys, I let you down with that strategy,” was Hamilton’s message to his team after he dropped down the order and missed out on what would’ve been his seventh Grand Prix podium of the season.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Vasseur elaborated: “We kept the door open for the two options depending on a VSC and so on – that was the case.

“We called them both to pit – it would have been P2 and P3 because we were P2 and P3 on track. He missed the pit entry. Honestly, it’s a bit of a shame because he lost a podium too.

“He was crystal clear on the radio. Now let’s be focused on Austin. The performance this weekend was okay. We have to be focused on the future.”