Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer called out for lack of ’empathy’

Issuing a blunt “lap time is deleted, P16” to Lewis Hamilton in Spa, Ted Kravitz said he expected a “bit more empathy” from Riccardo Adami.

Hamilton has had a torrid time at the Belgian Grand Prix having twice been eliminated from qualifying at the very first hurdle.

Lewis Hamilton suffered a double Q1 elimination at Spa

The seven-time World Champion spun off the track in Sprint qualifying while down in 18th place, before a track limit violation cost him his fastest lap time in qualifying proper, dropping him to 16th on the grid.

Hamilton was notably downbeat as he apologised to Ferrari for his mistake.

“It is what it is,” he told the media, including PlanetF1.com. “Just really sorry to the team.

“Really hard work with the filming day that we did, and all the preparation, and then you come here and don’t make it through Q1.

“It’s just… it’s unacceptable. Really sorry.”

But at a time when it sounds like Hamilton could do with words of encouragement and a bit of sympathy, he didn’t receive either of those from his race engineer Adami as he spoke with the Italian on his cooldown lap after Q1.

Hamilton: “Is everything okay?”

Adami: “Uh… Track limits at Turn 4.”

Hamilton: “Am I out?”

Adami: “Yeah. Lap time is deleted. P16.”

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Sky’s pit lane reporter Kravitz was surprised by the Italian’s tone, which he reckons was very different to how Hamilton’s long-time Mercedes engineer Pete ‘Bono’ Bonnington would’ve broken the news to the driver.

Speaking in his post-qualifying Ted’s Notebook, Kravitz said: “Did you think it was a bit terse on the radio between him and Riccardo Adami, saying, ‘Is there something wrong?’, and Riccardo Adami rather said flatly, ‘Yes, track limits, we are out’.

“I don’t know whether I expected a bit more empathy.

“I don’t know. Just listen to it yourself. It didn’t sound like a Lewis and Bono situation.

“I expected the engineer to say, ‘Ah, I’m sorry Lewis, bad luck mate, you’re out, it was track limits, hard done by pal’. The kind of thing that Bono would have said to him.

“Riccardo Adami isn’t Bono, I guess they are a different relationship there.

“Give it a listen yourself.”

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur acknowledged that Hamilton was in the middle of a difficult weekend with his confidence knocked by his ongoing issues.

“As for Lewis,” he said, “he was unable to put everything together but the field is so close, a matter of just hundredths or even thousandths of a second between the cars.

“His pace was good, he was just one place behind Charles but the track limits put him out and it is what it is.

“It’s true that it’s been a tough weekend for him so far and, at this track, you need to build up confidence lap after lap and with the problems yesterday and today that was made difficult for him.”

Hamilton will line up on the Spa grid sitting P6 in the Drivers’ Championship, 21 points down on Charles Leclerc.

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