But Hamilton may not keep his place on the front row as he was immediately placed under investigation, accused of potentially having impeded another car on track. The Ferrari driver referenced that in his post-qualifying interview as he admitted he was going over the incident in his mind to figure out whether he had got in the way of another driver.
Oscar Piastri was the driver potentially hindered by Hamilton. Replayed showed that, after the Ferrari driver had completed his final attempt to improve, he was dawdling around a long right-hander corner while the McLaren zoomed up to the back of him and had to slow. That TV footage suggested the case against Hamilton would be strong as Piastri had to take clear avoiding action.
The incident was noted within just a few moments and it has been confirmed that the case has now been passed onto the stewards. They are likely to summon both drivers to hear each version of events before deciding whether to give a sporting penalty to Hamilton.
The positions of both drivers was made pretty clear over the team radio in the seconds after the incident. Piastri simply swore loudly, clearly angry that he had been impeded, while Hamilton asked his race engineer Carlo Santi: “Was Piastri on a lap?” The Ferrari engineer confirmed that the Australian had indeed been trying to improve his time.
Piastri also made it clear he laid the blame of the incident squarely at the feet of his fellow driver. “Lewis didn’t look in his mirrors, the yellow flag wasn’t the problem,” the McLaren driver complained. His frustration would have been amplified by the fact team-mate Norris found enough pace in his car to qualify on pole.
Hamilton waved to Piastri apologetically from the cockpit of his car and said in his post-qualifying interview: “I think my mind is just elsewhere just this second because once I finished my lap I don’t know if I got in the way of someone. So I’m trying to just run that through my mind because I wasn’t aware anyone was coming.”
Regarding the pace he had in his Ferrari, he added: “We have been doing a great job all weekend. I felt solid throughout qualifying and, for some reason, we went out first, which I don’t think was the right call. But then, on top of that, just the grip for some reason wasn’t there on that last lap for both Charles [Leclerc] and me. We were quickest throughout qualifying so it definitely got away from us.”