SM
Man City vs. Chelsea: 6 hrs 17 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Lewis Hamilton: 'I won't lose sleep over Singapore defeat'

:Headline: Lewis Hamilton: 'I won't lose sleep over Singapore defeat': ID:372482: from db_amp
The Mercedes driver finished fourth after his team misjudged their strategy.

Lewis Hamilton will not be "losing any sleep" over his failure to win in Singapore, the Briton's team boss Toto Wolff has claimed.

Hamilton was denied a shot at victory following a Mercedes strategy blunder during Sunday's race at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.

The world champion dropped from second to fourth as Sebastian Vettel claimed a much-needed win ahead of Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen in third.

Lewis Hamilton finished fourth in Singapore (Vincent Thian/AP)

The result enabled the trio to reduce the championship deficit to Hamilton but, with six rounds remaining and only 156 points still to play for, the Mercedes star still holds a dominant 96-point lead over Leclerc and Verstappen, with Vettel six points further back.

Indeed, despite Hamilton's disappointing night in Singapore, the five-time world champion will head to Sochi for Sunday's Russian Grand Prix with an improved title lead of 65 points over Valtteri Bottas, after he finished one place ahead of his Mercedes team-mate.

"Lewis is strong and when you are a five-time world champion with a 96-point lead, a lead which equates to four victories, you are not losing any sleep," said Wolff.

"We are all angry. When we got together with the drivers and the engineers, there is a feeling that we got it wrong this weekend, but it doesn't mean it will have a long-term effect.

"Obviously, with the expectations we set ourselves, fourth and fifth is disappointing. The mood is one of annoyance and there isn't a single person in the team who doesn't have this feeling."

Vettel ended his 392-day wait for a race victory to deny Leclerc a third win in as many races, but the German's triumph arrived with some fortune.

Sebastian Vettel had not won since August 2018 (Vincent Thian/AP)

Vettel was called in for tyres one lap earlier than Leclerc as Ferrari attempted to keep the 32-year-old ahead of Verstappen.

Vettel, however, took advantage of the fresh rubber, not only to keep Verstappen at bay, but to leapfrog Leclerc, too, much to the annoyance of the young Monegasque, who moaned that Ferrari's strategy was not fair.

"Two alphas competing for position has the potential for a rivalry and escalation within the team," added Wolff, who oversaw Hamilton's bitter relationship with former team-mate Nico Rosberg.

"We have been there before, but today, as a team, we are very strong with a clear philosophy. The positive is that they [the Ferrari drivers] keep taking points off each other, which is an advantage for us."

amp_article__372482 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-09-23 05:29:31:
html db last update - 2021-03-11 13:09:23 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Lewis Hamilton

Click here for more stories about Mercedes

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
2Arsenal32225575264971
3Liverpool32218372314171
4Aston Villa33196868491963
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle321551269521750
7Manchester UnitedMan Utd32155124748-150
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham33139115258-648
9Chelsea31138106152947
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves32127134651-543
12Fulham33126154951-242
13Bournemouth32119124757-1042
14Crystal Palace3289153754-1733
15Brentford3388174758-1132
16Everton3298153248-1627
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3379174258-1626
18Luton TownLuton3367204670-2425
19Burnley3348213368-3520
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3237223084-5416
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .