Lewis Hamilton has claimed his late Q3 gamble was futile as it was “properly wet” as the session restarted. Hamilton was lying P8 as team-mate George Russell crashed out in the final part of qualifying.
The former Williams star’s shunt brought out the red flags which allowed the rain to worsen during the stoppage. When the session restarted, Hamilton and Sergio Perez were the only two drivers to come out of the pits for an exploratory lap as Kevin Magnussen’s Haas sat on provisional pole.
However, the Mercedes star peeled back into the pits after just the one installation lap having determined it would be too wet to improve his time. Speaking after the session, Hamilton said: “I just went out to see what the conditions were like but it was properly wet, so that’s motor racing.
“It was just difficult to see the conditions. It was difficult to see the rain drops as it was so dark. I was the last car out so I think I just got the earliest part of the rain or something.
READ MORE: George Russell crashes out of Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying
The German manufacturer has managed to battle Red Bull at the front of the field since introducing new upgrades at the United States Grand Prix. After the session, Russell admitted the result was worse than what the team were expecting coming into the weekend.
However, he stressed there was still opportunities to better their position in tomorrow’s sprint race. He explained: “P3, not necessarily where we wanted to be but a very good place to be starting for tomorrow’s sprint race.
“I think it is our best shot at finishing ahead of Max and Red Bull if there are some mixed conditions. I think we are ready for a good couple of races.”
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