Lewis Hamilton’s sweary reaction to his nightmare qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix led to broadcasters apologising for his bad language.
The seven-time Formula 1 world champion actually finished second in Saturday morning’s sprint race, but it was a return to form for Mercedes in the following qualifying session as their struggles continued.Hamilton, who is leaving Mercedes to join Ferrari next year, was eliminated in the first round of quali at the Shanghai International Circuit, which saw grass fires interrupt the practise sessions on Friday.It means he will start Sunday’s race all the way back in 18th – with only Yuki Tsunoda and Logan Sargeantbehind him.Meanwhile, Mercedes teammate George Russell was out in the second round of qualifying and will start eighth in the grid, with Vax Verstappen and Sergio Perez to start in first and second, respectively, for Red Bull.It was Hamilton’s worst performance in qualifying in almost seven years, with former Mercedes teammate and rival Nico Rosberg branding it a ‘disaster’.
And the 39-year-old could not hide his frustration when interviewed by Sky Sports after coming back into the paddock.
“I just struggled – it is what it is,” said the F1 great. “This morning, George [Russell] and I had very similar cars but this afternoon, we are trying to experiment still with car.
“So I went one way, a long way, and he went the other way, just to see if we could find anything.
“But yeah, it didn’t work. I’ll give it my best shot – 18th is pretty bad.
