All eyes were on Lando Norris when the lights went out at the Circuit of The Americas. With a lightning-fast reaction off the line, Norris found himself leading the grid into turn one. Although the MCL60 was no match for the RB19, the McLaren driver wasn’t complaining about trailing the reigning champion. But there are worse places where he could be, and Mercedes wanted to prove just that. Lewis Hamilton continued his sprint-race form at the US GP on Sunday, but the drama was just beginning to unfold!

In a cruel twist of fate, Hamilton was disqualified after his Mercedes was called in for a floor and plank inspection. The wooden inserts are a way for the FIA to assess if the teams are running their cars too low to the ground. In the era of ground effect, teams can gain crucial tenths by running their setup as low as possible. Unfortunately for Hamilton, the Brackley outfit had taken too much of a risk with the setup, and it cost them dearly.

Hamilton falls prey to Mercedes’ incompetence at the US GP

Looking to bounce back from his clash with Russell at the Qatar Grand Prix, Hamilton was charged up. The Brackley outfit came prepared to Austin, with their last major upgrade of the year in the form of an updated floor. The team was looking racy throughout the weekend, finishing just behind Max Verstappen in the sprint race. They had quickly become the favorites for fans who wanted to see a driver take the fight to the Dutch Lion on Sunday. But a poor strategy call that ended up favoring Red Bull left Hamilton only 2.2 seconds behind the man who gave him hell in 2021. The chequered flag came out, and the seven-time world champion was unable to enact his revenge.

Whilst P2 was Hamilton’s best finish since the Spanish GP, the pace gained by the Mercedes was not enough alone. Mercedes had let Lewis Hamilton down with their strategy at the US GP, and to make things worse, it all came undone after their disqualification due to the worn-out wooden plank. In the post-race conference, Hamilton was asked whether he believed he had it in the bag if only the team had provided him with the correct strategy. The seven-time world champion reflected on his race. “Yes. I do think we would’ve been in a fighting position to fight with Max.”

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He was not afraid to speak out on Mercedes’ blunder. He added, “I think we made our life a lot harder today than it probably needed to be. I think it was probably going to be hard anyway.” While it would not have been easy to overtake a flawless Verstappen, he can’t help but think it was a missed opportunity.

‘No wiggle room’ – Toto Wolff and Co. find themselves in an awkward spot

Would it have been better if the seven-time champ had won the race instead? The LH Army’s hearts would have shattered after the disqualification, that’s for sure! So in a way, maybe Hamilton got off easy. On the other hand, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff cut the Brit some slack, admitting to the Brackley outfit’s blunder. Wolff took the setback on the chin. “Others got it right where we got it wrong and there’s no wiggle room in the rules. We need to take it on the chin, do the learning, and come back stronger next weekend.”

Whilst the floor upgrade had done wonders for Hamilton, the team’s decision with the set-up could have favored the Brit more. “Set-up choices on a sprint weekend are always a challenge with just one hour of free practice – and even more so at a bumpy circuit like COTA and running a new package.” Trying to extract maximum performance, the Brackley outfit chose to run the W14 dangerously low to the ground. And it cost them when the skid plate wore off more than what the FIA would pass in an inspection.

While the US GP weekend proved to be another disaster for Lewis Hamilton, it’s not all nightmares for the Brackley Outfit. Hamilton’s pace throughout the weekend spoke volumes of the work the team has done behind the scenes, and the W14 has come to life once again. Unfortunately for Hamilton, the points tally has not reflected this newfound pace. It will be crucial for Mercedes to be on top of their game to avoid mistakes like this. But things are looking up for the seven-time world champion.

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Hamilton may not pose a serious threat to Verstappen in 2023. But he is definitely itching to settle an old score. Will he rise? Stay tuned for more!