"Of course, Charles Leclerc and Ferrari ruined Lewis Hamilton's qualifying": Fans react to the 7x F1 champion's elimination in SQ2

F1 fans shared their reactions after Lewis Hamilton’s final lap in the Brazilian Grand Prix SQ2 was ruined when his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc spun ahead of him. The incident brought yellow flags out, preventing anyone from improving their times and knocking the seven-time world champion out of the session, while Leclerc managed to advance.

Ferrari looked to be in for yet another underwhelming weekend at the Brazilian GP, as both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc had struggled with the SF-25 during Sprint Qualifying on Friday. The former was even knocked out in SQ2, mostly thanks to his Monegasque teammate.

On his final lap in SQ2, Leclerc locked up coming into Turn 10, leading to a spin for the driver. This caused brief yellow flags and directly affected Hamilton's lap, as he was just behind his teammate on track.

F1 fans were left frustrated by the incident, with some even alleging that Leclerc may have made the mistake on purpose to get through to SQ3.

"Of course Leclerc and Ferrari ruined Lewis's qualifying," said one fan. "Yea Leclerc f***ed Hamilton's lap it is what it is," said another user. "I'm sure Leclerc spun on purpose to eliminate Hamilton, but I can't prove that," claimed another fan.

Here are some more reactions:

"Leclerc spinning and ruining Lewis’s qualifying twice in 5 races Ok," noted another user. "Three weekends in a row he has screwed his team mate," claimed another fan. "It looks like both Ferrari drivers are driving on ice today," said another user.

Lewis Hamilton will now start Saturday's sprint race from P11 after his underwhelming showing on Friday. Charles Leclerc was unable to make up many positions in SQ3 either and will start the shortened race from P8.

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Lewis Hamilton shares frustrated team radio after SQ2 exit at Brazilian GP

Lewis Hamilton during the Brazilian GP - Sprint Qualifying - Source: Getty

Lewis Hamilton shared a frustrated radio message with the Ferrari pit wall after being knocked out in the Brazilian GP sprint qualifying SQ2. The 40-year-old was left disappointed and implied that familiar mistakes had cost him a spot in SQ3.

After being told by his race engineer that he was P11 and knocked out of SQ2 at Interlagos, Hamilton replied, saying:

"Yeah. Every time, mate."

Hamilton is looking to improve on his disastrous outing at the Mexican GP last time out, when the Briton finished eighth after having started from P3. He received a 10-second penalty, which ended his chances of achieving his first podium with Ferrari.

The veteran had been hoping to bounce back at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace this time around, but his weekend has now started in the worst possible fashion. The Ferrari also does not look to be anywhere near the pace of their competitors in the constructors' standings, including Mercedes and Red Bull.

Edited by Hitesh Nigam