F1 News
Tow at Mercedes was 'never discussed' reveals Hamilton
- Cameron Smith
Max Verstappen secured pole position for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, and was helped to that result by a tow from his Red Bull Racing teammate Sergio Perez. Lewis Hamilton was unable to match the time his title rival delivered, but has admitted a tow was never considered at Mercedes.
Hamilton and Verstappen are tied on points heading into the season finale, and it's advantage Verstappen so far this weekend having secured the first spot on the grid.
Speaking to Sky Sports at the post-qualifying press conference, Hamilton revealed that despite the success Red Bull gained from giving Verstappen a tow, that idea was not something that Mercedes had considered.
Hamilton and Bottas have never exchanged a tow
"The car was good, Max did a great job on that final lap," Hamilton admitted. "Through practice, or FP3 at least, into qualifying, the car was feeling solid. Through qualifying it felt harder to gain speed.
"Then the last two laps weren't easy to really pull out the time. I don't know if it is track temp or what. The last lap was okay. I can't complain, but of course wish we were a bit quicker today. No [tow at Mercedes], it wasn't discussed. We've never done that [given a tow]" concluded the seven-time world champion.
This marks the final race weekend during which Hamilton and Bottas will be teammates, with the Finn leaving the team to join Alfa Romeo. Hamilton will be joined by current Williams driver George Russell at Mercedes next year.