‘I didn’t want to come back’

Lewis Hamilton has cast light on a curious message to his team over the radio after the previous grand prix in Brazil.

The Mercedes driver endured a torrid weekend in Interlagos, taking just a single point in tenth place, six positions and almost half a minute behind team mate George Russell

After taking the chequered flag, Hamilton described his weekend as a “disaster” over team radio as he returned to the pits.

“That’s the worst the car’s ever been,” he said. “But thank you for continuing to try.

“Great job to all the guys at the pit stop. If this is the last time that I get to perform, it’s a shame it wasn’t great, but grateful for you.”

Asked ahead of this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix about what he meant by “if this is the last time”, Hamilton said he was considering not returning for the final three rounds after he had finished the race.

“In the moment, that’s how I felt,” he said. “I didn’t really want to come back after that weekend.

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“But I think that’s only natural. It’s frustrating when you have a season like this. Which I’m pretty sure I won’t have again, or, at least, I’ll work towards not having again. It wasn’t a great feeling in that moment. But I’m here, I’m standing strong and I’m going to give it absolutely everything for these last few races.”

Heading into the first race of his final three rounds as a Mercedes driver, Hamilton says he does not expect the cool November night temperatures in Las Vegas to suit Mercedes.

“It’s not going to be great for us,” he said. “We’ve always struggled with tyre temperature, getting temperature in. And then at the hot tracks, overheating and then at [cooler] tracks like this, it will probably be a real challenge. But I think everyone will have that.”

Hamilton is also concerned about the lack of grip on the circuit, which is open to traffic between F1 sessions. “There’s a section of the track that’s open to the public, which will be messy and there’s no one driving for us,” he said. “So I wish we had the F1 Academy here this weekend. That’d have been cool.”

Although there were no support events for F1’s first visit to Las Vegas last year, two Ferrari Challenge races will take place this weekend. F1 Academy will join the support roster in 2025.