Lewis Hamilton slams Mercedes in expletive-ridden radio message after Dutch GP ruined | F1 | Sport

Lewis Hamilton ripped into his Mercedes team with an astonishing expletive-ridden rant after losing the lead to Max Verstappen at the Dutch Grand Prix. The Mercedes star was left distraught after the team decided to pit George Russell during the safety car, leaving Hamilton exposed on the restart on Lap 61.

The 37-year-old had been in a prime position to win his first race of the season after Verstappen pitted for soft tyres while the safety car was deployed. The seven-time champion had his team-mate George Russell behind him, meaning the championship leader had to overtake both Mercedes cars to win.

But the Silver Arrows made a curious call to bring Russell into the pits, also for soft tyres for the final stint of the race, allowing Verstappen to easily leapfrog the young Briton into second place.

It left Hamilton exposed on the restart in a haunting replay of Abu Dhabi in 2021 with Verstappen on fresher tyres and the Dutchman showed his craft, lining up his move with help from the slipstream to complete the overtake down the main straight.

That left Hamilton fuming, with the 37-year-old initially using some choice words to describe their strategy failure. “That was the biggest f*** up,” he shouted on the team radio.

And his misery was compounded when Russell, on fresher tyres, decided to make a move on his team-mate which nearly saw the two collide. And a frustrated Hamilton unleashed a tirade of expletive-ridden words for his team.

“I can’t believe you guys **** **** me, can’t tell you how **** I am,” he shouted, laying the blame firmly at their feet.