Lewis Hamilton has called on Ferrari to improve its race strategy after a frustrating Dutch Grand Prix. The British driver finished fourth at Zandvoort but felt he could have challenged for the podium if Ferrari had acted sooner.
Lando Norris won the race for McLaren. Mercedes drivers Kimi Antonelli and George Russell finished second and third. Hamilton had a strong pace late in the race but lost valuable time behind Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Hamilton was on a different tyre plan and believed Ferrari should have moved Leclerc aside earlier. When Ferrari finally brought Leclerc into the pits, Hamilton made his frustration clear over the team radio.
“Great way of wasting time, good job,” Hamilton said after the delay.
The seven-time world champion then compared Ferrari’s approach with Mercedes. The German team acted quickly when Antonelli was on faster tyres than Russell during the closing stages.
Mercedes told Russell to allow Antonelli through. The move helped Antonelli secure second place and protect his championship position.
Hamilton said Ferrari needed to learn from Mercedes’ approach. He also stressed that every point matters in a close title fight.
“I’m here to win and I really believe that this team can win,” Hamilton said. He added that the team must collect every possible point if it wants to fight for the championship.
Hamilton is now 59 points behind Antonelli in the championship. Russell is also ahead of him, making the gap to the title lead a growing concern for Ferrari.
The result was another difficult weekend for Hamilton. He said recent races had already been hard because of penalties, and the lost time behind Leclerc added to his frustration.
Hamilton joined Ferrari with hopes of fighting for another world title. He has made it clear that his main goal is to help the team return to the top of Formula 1.
“My goal is to try and lead this team to the championship,” Hamilton said. He also admitted that Ferrari still has work to do.
Mercedes showed a different approach during the race. Russell was asked to move aside for Antonelli when the Italian had much newer tyres and greater speed.
Russell was not happy with the order at first. However, he later accepted the decision and said it was the correct choice for the team.
Mercedes has clear rules for situations when drivers are using different strategies. Russell said drivers are not expected to fight each other when one has a clear tyre advantage.
He also said Antonelli would likely have passed him anyway because of the difference in tyre performance.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff defended the decision. He said team orders can be difficult for a driver but stressed that the team had already agreed on the rules.
Wolff said the decision was simple because Mercedes did not want its drivers to lose time while rivals were close behind.
The Dutch Grand Prix showed the different ways teams handled their drivers. Mercedes made a quick call to protect Antonelli’s position, while Ferrari waited longer before allowing Hamilton to gain clear track space.
For Hamilton, the difference was important. He believes Ferrari needs to make faster decisions if it wants to compete for major titles.
Ferrari now faces pressure to improve both its car and its race calls. Hamilton’s comments show that he expects the team to act with more confidence when championship points are at stake.
With the season moving forward, every race will become more important. Hamilton knows Ferrari must avoid giving away points if he is to stay in the title fight.
