Lewis Hamilton Takes Full Blame for Failed Ferrari Strategy in Singapore

A strategic miscalculation during the Singapore Grand Prix cost Lewis Hamilton a podium finish at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, dropping him to sixth place. The seven-time world champion held his hands up and took full responsibility for the call not to pit under the Virtual Safety Car.

The VSC was triggered on lap 39 when Lance Stroll pulled off with a suspected clutch failure on his Aston Martin. At that stage, Hamilton was 21 laps into a soft-tyre stint, while team-mate Charles Leclerc had completed 15 laps on mediums. Only the Monegasque driver came in to take advantage of a cheap second pit stop.

Running second and third with a 4.4-second gap between turns 10 and 11, Ferrari had a clear window to double-stack their cars. However, the Briton opted to gamble on track position, extending his soft stint to a marathon 44 laps. The move backfired dramatically: Hamilton slid to sixth and was even passed by Oscar Piastri, who had made a post-VSC stop due to a slow puncture. Hamilton crossed the line nearly 46 seconds behind Leclerc, with the strategic blunder costing him around 41.5 seconds.

Team principal Fred Vasseur told F1 TV that Ferrari had split their strategies from the start to give Leclerc a chance to attack polesitter Max Verstappen. Regarding the VSC period, Vasseur added:

Following the Dutchman's maiden victory under the Singapore lights, Hamilton's advantage over fourth-placed Verstappen in the drivers' championship has been cut to just eight points.