‘Angry’ and ‘confused’ Lewis Hamilton reveals Mercedes’ ‘strategy battle’ in Singapore

Lewis Hamilton said he fought for Mercedes to deviate from a strategy split in Singapore that required him to start on soft tyres, a decision that left him “perplexed”.

While qualifying has been a problem area for Hamilton in F1 2024, he delivered another convincing performance at the Marina Bay Circuit, qualifying P3 while his Mercedes teammate George Russell lined up alongside him on the front row.

Lewis Hamilton comments on the strategy conflict at the Singapore GP for Mercedes

However, while the medium tyre was the compound of choice for most drivers, including Russell, at the beginning, Mercedes insisted on the soft tyre for Hamilton, who claimed to have campaigned strongly for the medium tyres.

“In our meeting on the morning of the race, actually the night before, they mentioned that they would like to split the cars,” Hamilton said, speaking alongside Russell at an event hosted by Mercedes' partner Petronas.

“And I was a little bit confused about that. Because in the past, when we've ever been in that position… Usually, if George has qualified well, like he usually does, and I'm not in the top 10 or something, then we share strategies, but we were so close. That didn't make sense to me.

“So I fought with all my might to be able to switch to the medium tyre, but the team still advised me to start with the soft tyres.

“And when they took the tires off, everyone was driving on medium…”

Both Mercedes drivers tried to keep things light-hearted. Russell drew laughter when he said: “When I saw that, I thought: 'Lewis is not going to be happy…'”

Hamilton pitted on lap 17 to swap the soft tyres for hard tyres. Russell emerged ahead of Hamilton when he pitted later and from then on was in the best position for a podium finish, which ultimately went to McLaren's Oscar Piastri. Hamilton had to settle for P6.

“I was so angry,” Hamilton continued, “from that moment on I was frustrated.”

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell in direct comparison in F1 2024

👉 F1 2024: Head-to-head racing statistics between teammates

👉 F1 2024: Direct comparison of teammates in qualifying

“And then I tried my best to keep up with the guys in front of me. They were too fast. And then I tried to use the tire as long as possible and I had to stop on lap 17. From that moment on I knew the race was over for me because the hard tire would be a problem in this heat.

“We struggled with the balance of the car all weekend and changed so many different things. We had a good qualifying but unfortunately the race was too tough for us.”

With six rounds to go in F1 2024, Hamilton is in 6th place in the drivers' standings, one position and 19 points ahead of Russell.

Read more: Lando Norris questions Mercedes driver's media absence at Singapore GP: “It's hard for everyone”