Hamilton: “I made a mistake in qualifying”

Lewis Hamilton said he made his own decision to abort his final lap in qualifying for the British GP. The Englishman slipped to sixth as his teammate, Nico Rosberg, went on to take pole on a drying track in the final moments of Q3. When time expired Hamilton was first but chose to return to the pits, his partner and four other drivers managed to improve their time in the last sector, overtaking Hamilton. Mercedes had asked Hamilton to give way to Rosberg on the final run if the Englishman felt he couldn't improve but Lewis declared that the decision to abort the lap was his.

“It was my mistake,” declared a visibly disappointed Hamilton. “I don't remember what was said on the radio, but they didn't say anything that influenced my decision,” added Hamilton. “This is the nature of English weather. We have some amazing fans here today and I apologize for disappointing them today. I will try to do my best tomorrow from my position. I think that tomorrow the race will be run on a dry track, but in any case I will give my best. At the moment I can't think about winning, but I will do everything I can. When you get out of the car after a qualifying like this it's very difficult to be happy and smile but I will analyze everything and work as best as I can tonight to make sure I'm competitive again tomorrow."