Lewis Hamilton said he could not wait for the season to end after he qualified only 11th for Sunday’s finale in Abu Dhabi – leaving Mercedes on the backfoot to salvage second in the Formula One world championship. As Max Verstappen put his Red Bull on pole position for the final race of his all-conquering campaign – with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc runner-up and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri third – Hamilton was left staring at another abysmal performance in his underperforming machinery. Indeed, Hamilton, six tenths behind Verstappen and a third-of-a-second back from team-mate George Russell, who qualified fourth, even claimed there was something wrong with his car. His failure to progress to Q3 means the fight between Mercedes and Ferrari for second place in the constructors’ championship, worth nearly £10million, hangs in the balance. The Silver Arrows head their Italian rivals by just four points ahead of Sunday’s race in the desert. And Leclerc finished ahead of both Russell and Hamilton to hand Ferrari the initiative. “I don’t have any answers,” said Hamilton, who gloomily predicted his Q2 demise here 24 hours previously. “It is just a very unpredictable car and it has been all year. I wouldn’t say I am relieved, but I am definitely happy it is nearly over.” Hamilton’s comments were echoed by Toto Wolff. “I’m fed up with having explanations as to why it didn’t go well,” said the Mercedes team principal. “I’m happy that this was the last qualifying of the season and we will be back with a new car.” Hamilton’s poor result came after it emerged that his father – and one-time manager Anthony – had enquired about a seat for his son at Red Bull. Hamilton has recorded just one podium in his last six appearances following Mercedes’ tumble down the grid and he faces an uphill task to salvage a respectable result at the Yas Marina Circuit. “There is something not right with this car, mate,” said the 38-year-old on the radio as he shook his head. “The car is more inconsistent than ever before,” he later explained. “It is up-and-down from the moment you hit the brakes, the moment you turn, the moment you hit the apex, it is massively out of balance and hard to predict what is going to happen. “George and I set our cars up the same, but they don’t read the same so there is something not right on our side. I have been off all weekend and struggled. Eleventh…it takes some good going for me not to get into Q3.” Hamilton is third in the individual standings, 317 points Verstappen, with the Dutchman the overwhelming favourite to claim a remarkable 19th victory from the 22 rounds. Mercedes are a staggering 430 points behind the Dutchman’s Red Bull team, who have won every race bar one this year. Mercedes were handed a minor boost after Carlos Sainz was a surprise eliminated in Q1. Sainz bemoaned traffic for his lowly 16th grid slot. But Leclerc’s improvement on his final run, to finish just 0.139 seconds behind Verstappen, provides the Prancing Horse with a spring in their step. “The target is to beat Mercedes, so I hope Carlos gets a good start and joins me in the fight,” said Leclerc. “Let’s look to put both of our cars in front of Mercedes because finishing second in the constructors is all that matters to me.” Elsewhere, Lando Norris qualified a disappointing fifth after he got out of shape on his last lap. “I don’t know why it happened,” he said. “I’ve not done that all weekend so it’s frustrating. I’m just doing a s*** job on Saturday.” Asked if he was being too hard on himself, the 24-year-old replied: “Not at all. I was fighting for second and I end up fifth because of a stupid mistake. I’m too soft on myself.” Read More George Russell fastest as rookies handed chance in first Abu Dhabi practice Class action lawsuit filed over farcical start to Las Vegas Grand Prix Toto Wolff fuelled by ‘personal anger’ to help Lewis Hamilton win eighth title F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix LIVE: Qualifying updates and times at Yas Marina F1 grid: Starting positions for Abu Dhabi Grand Prix When does the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix start and how can I watch?

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Lewis Hamilton said there was something wrong with his Mercedes after he qualified only 11th for Sunday’s season finale in Abu Dhabi. As Max Verstappen put his Red Bull on pole position for the final race of his all-conquering campaign – with Charles Leclerc second and Oscar Piastri third – Hamilton was left starting at another poor performance in his underperforming machinery. The seven-time world champion, facing up to a second season without a victory, finished six tenths behind Verstappen and a third-of-a-second back from team-mate George Russell, who qualified fourth. Hamilton’s failure to progress to Q3 – as he gloomily predicted here on Friday night – leaves the fight between Mercedes and Ferrari for second place in the constructors’ championship firmly in the balance. The Silver Arrows head their Italian rivals by just four points ahead of Sunday’s finale in the desert. And Leclerc finished ahead of both Russell and Hamilton to hand Ferrari the initiative. However, Mercedes were handed a minor boost after Carlos Sainz was a surprise eliminee in Q1. A day after he crashed out in practice, Sainz bemoaned traffic for his lowly 16th grid slot. It emerged earlier this week that Hamilton’s father and one-time manager Anthony had enquired about a seat for his son at Red Bull. Hamilton has recorded just one podium in his last six appearances following Mercedes’ tumble down the grid, and he faces an uphill task to salvage a respectable result at the Yas Marina Circuit. “There is something not right with this car, mate,” said the 38-year-old as he headed back to the pits shaking his head. Hamilton is third in the standings, an extraordinary 317 points Verstappen, with the Dutchman starting Sunday’s 58-lap race as the overwhelming favourite to claim a remarkable 19th victory from the 22 rounds this year. Verstappen finished 0.139 seconds ahead of Leclerc, while McLaren’s Lando Norris was a disappointing fifth. The British driver got out of shape on his final lap in the last sector, losing him considerable time. “The whole weekend has been a struggle,” said Verstappen. “But we improved the car for qualifying so I am very happy to be on pole.” Quizzed about Ferrari’s battle against Mercedes, Leclerc said: “I hope it is going to go well. “The target is to beat them, so I hope Carlos get a good start and joins me in the fight. “Let’s look to put both of our cars in front of Mercedes because finishing second in the constructors is all that matters to me.” Elsewhere, Yuki Tsunoda impressed to take sixth spot for AlphaTauri, one place ahead of Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. Sergio Perez’s final lap was deleted for exceeding track limits, leaving him in ninth. Read More George Russell fastest as rookies handed chance in first Abu Dhabi practice Class action lawsuit filed over farcical start to Las Vegas Grand Prix Toto Wolff fuelled by ‘personal anger’ to help Lewis Hamilton win eighth title On this day in 2010: Sebastian Vettel becomes youngest ever F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton to start down the order in Abu Dhabi as Max Verstappen claims pole F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix LIVE: Qualifying updates and times at Yas Marina

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F1 returns to Abu Dhabi this weekend for the usual season-finale at the Yas Marina Circuit. Max Verstappen won the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix last week for his 18th victory of a record-breaking season. The Dutchman has now won six races in a row since Carlos Sainz’s victory in Singapore in September. Charles Leclerc finished second in Vegas after a terrific last-lap overtake on Sergio Perez, who despite dropping down to third place still sealed second in the world championship for Red Bull’s first-ever one-two finish in a Formula 1 season. Lewis Hamilton is still chasing his first win in nearly two years as Mercedes look to stave off Ferrari in the battle for second place in the constructors’ championship. Toto Wolff’s team are four points clear ahead of the final grand prix of the season. Follow live updates from the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with The Independent Read More Lewis Hamilton takes aim at Christian Horner: ‘He’s stirring things!’ Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen to miss first practice in Abu Dhabi Mick Schumacher returns to racing with Alpine in 2024

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