Lewis Hamilton handed Azerbaijan GP penalty before race starts after Mercedes decision

Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion of Formula One, will begin Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix from the pits, despite placing seventh for Mercedes in Baku on Saturday.

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix will begin with Lewis Hamilton starting in the pits.

Seven-time world champion Hamilton qualified seventh for Mercedes on Saturday in Baku. Mercedes has chosen to add a fifth power unit to his W15 as a penalty for him going over his allotted power unit for the season.

Mercedes’ choice to add a second power unit is not shocking given that Hamilton publicly discussed his difficulties after qualifying on Saturday.

“The car felt fantastic yesterday, and I genuinely believe that it could have been in the second row today. But after qualifying, I came here today and all of a sudden, the tires didn’t work all day,” Hamilton said to Sky Sports F1.

“It’s just tires. When you get the tires to work, all of a sudden you’re up there if you notice the Williams.

“But I’m trying everything with the tires, going above and beyond what I usually do. Most of the time when we go outside, the tires are below the window and are inaccessible.

“You’re looking at my fastest sector, but it’s near the end of the lap. I’ve lost anywhere from half a second to a second every Saturday, and today was worse than yesterday.

“I perform it each weekend. I’m limited to working as hard as I can. All I have to do is remain optimistic and avoid getting carried away.”

Toto Wolff offered some solace to his star in spite of Hamilton’s outrage following qualifying. “Normally, half a tenth makes the difference between three places,” he stated. Lewis contends that minute errors are what separate fifth place finishers from second or even pole finishers.”

It is unquestionably a setback for Hamilton, who will find it more difficult to move through the field and score points, but it gives teammate George Russell a small lift as he moves up to 15th on the grid. From his starting position of 17th after Pierre Gasly was disqualified from qualifying, he advances two spots.