Lewis Hamilton’s Miami Grand Prix fury after abandoned event – ‘Here to race’ | F1 | Sport
Lewis Hamilton was involved in some drama in last year’s Miami Grand Prix. (Image: Getty)
Last year’s Miami Grand Prix was packed with drama and incident, from a cancelled academy race to some tense radio messages between Lewis Hamilton and his Ferrari team. This year promises more of the same, not least because of heavy rain that is due to hit the circuit this weekend.
For now, at least, F1 is back after an extended and unforseen early season break. The teams last revved their engines in anger at the Japanese Grand Prix in late March before a five-week hiatus due to the cancellations of both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix amid tensions in the Middle East.
Last year’s Miami Grand Prix also saw a cancelled contest, albeit not the main race itself, rather the F1 academy. Torrential rain on the Sunday, which could happen again this year, saw the postponement of Academy Race 2 following several formation laps which saw drivers encounter grip and visibility issues, while some aquaplained off the circuit entirely.
The Academy race was cancelled, although conditions improved enough for the main F1 race to go ahead later in the day. Not that Lewis Hamilton would have been particularly thankful for that given the difficult afternoon he experienced, with the Brit eventually finishing eighth after an eventful race.
One of the main flashpoints involved his team-mate Charles Leclerc, whom Hamilton asked to overtake as he closed in on the Monegasque. The two men were initially told to hold position, before the team finally gave Hamilton the go-ahead several laps later.
The delay prompted messages from Hamilton, including one where he said they could “have a tea break while you’re at it”, pointing to the delay.
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Following the race, Hamilton explained his comments to Sky Sports F1. “I lost a lot of time behind Charles and in that moment for sure I was like, come on let’s make a concise decision really quick, let’s not waste time.
“I’m sure people didn’t like certain comments but you’ve got to understand it was frustrating, people say way worse things than what I say. It was more sarcastic than anything and I’m not frustrated now. We’ll work internally, we’ll have discussions and we’ll keep pushing.”
He added: “Let’s not get emotional about it. We’re here to race, we’re not where we want to be.”
Ferrari and Hamilton’s season didn’t improve much from there, with the former Mercedes man failing to climb aboard the podium throughout the campaign. Indeed, he only managed to finish as high as fourth on four further occasions. The 2026 season has proven more fruitful so far, with a third place finish for Hamilton in China sandwiched in between the same placing for Leclerc in both Australia and Japan.
Lewis Hamilton during the 2025 Miami Grand Prix (Image: Getty)
Both men will be hoping that the change in regulations during the early season break can provide them with further impotus going forward. It is hoped that the changes will reduce the need for drivers to manage battery levels.
That could bring about some drama as the campaign resumes in the United States. Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli will be looking to defend his place at the top of the leaderboard, while Hamilton returns off the back of a sixth-placed finish in Japan.
