F1: Lewis Hamilton admits he 'lost it' while cursing over team radio

Mercedes F1 driver Lewis Hamilton has apologised to his team after he let out a furious barrage of expletives over his team radio in the closing stages of Sunday's Dutch Grand Prix.

In what could have been his strongest race in a still win-less 2022 season, the seven-time world champion held the lead for a number of laps before a virtual safety car and eventually an actual safety car period caused his team to bungle his strategy.

In a move reminiscent of his Abu Dhabi debacle in 2021 which cost him the world championship, Mercedes failed to take advantage of the safety car period to change Hamilton's tyres. His teammate, George Russell, insisted on a tyre change and managed to finish in second place behind race winner Max Verstappen, who also pitted for fresh tyres under the SC.

Hamilton meanwhile, dropped down to fourth place after whetting his appetite for a win during his brief period up in front. Verstappen ate him up at the restart, and after Russell overtook him on fresh tyres and it became clear that he would be dropping out of the podium spots, Hamilton let it rip against his team on the radio. "That was the biggest f*** up." he said, adding, "I can't believe you guys f***** sc****d me, can't tell you how p****d I am."

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc eventually moved up to third, and Hamilton could only watch as he soaked in his fate. By the end of the race, he had calmed down significantly, thanking his team for finally putting the Mercedes cars in a position to fight the Red Bulls and Ferraris.

He also took to social media to praise the Mercedes team:

In an interview after the race, he admitted that his emotions got the better of him. "My apologies to the team because I don't remember what I said, I just lost it for a second. But I think they know it was just so much passion," he said, as quoted by Crash.

He then looked at the positive side of the weekend, noting the team's massive improvements. "We were quicker than most at many points. I think without the Safety Car I think we would have been challenging them for the win at the end with the one-stop, which I don't think the others could do," he said.

Meanwhile, his teammate George Russel got his best finish of the season, just one step away from victory. "I really was hopeful that we were going to get a one-two together as a team," said Lewis.