Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were withdrawn from their post-race media sessions in Singapore after a fractious evening at Mercedes.
Team principal Toto Wolff said his two drivers were suffering from ‘borderline heatstroke’ in humid 30C heat. The pair were examined by a team doctor and excused the otherwise mandatory interviews by the FIA.
It meant Hamilton was unable to elaborate on his frustration during the race, where he went from third on the grid to finish sixth. He was unhappy with his strategy and complained that ‘something is definitely wrong with the car.’
The seven-time world champion’s mood was hardly helped by Russell, who was on a different strategy, leapfrogging him to take fourth place. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc also passed him for fifth.
Hamilton, who unusually among the front-runners started on soft tyres, was dismayed after being brought in early to move on to hards, 17 laps into the 62-lap race. He went into the pits third and came out in 13th.
George Russell (left) and Lewis Hamilton (right) were suffering with the heat after the Singapore GP
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff (pictured) said his two drivers were suffering from ‘borderline heatstroke’
Hamilton ended up 85 seconds behind winner Lando Norris and Russell was 61 seconds back
‘We will be in trouble here,’ he warned the team over the radio. ‘Way too short.’
Moments later, he added: ‘I’m already struggling with this tyre… You are killing me with this offset, mate.’
He then ran off the road trying to pass RB’s Yuki Tsunoda, causing Wolff to run his hand down his face as he watched on.
Hamilton ended up 85sec behind winner Lando Norris and Russell was 61sec back – dissipating Mercedes’ belief that they have found a remedy to their problems of the past three seasons.
‘They did not feel well,’ said Wolff. ‘Borderline heatstroke or something like that, but they have had water.
‘They would not have been able to go to the TV pen. There were no bad feelings or any annoyance.’
Hamilton, 39, previously scoffed at drivers wilting in stifling conditions in Qatar last year, while 26-year-old Russell is considered by well-placed trainers as the fittest man on the grid. Yet, ironically, all the other 18 drivers were healthy enough to fulfil their media calls.
Mercedes later issued quotes from their drivers. Hamilton said: ‘It is hard to describe the range of emotions you feel in a difficult race like that.
‘They did not feel well,’ Wolff said of his two drivers. ‘Borderline heatstroke or something like that, but they have had water.
Hamilton, 39, previously scoffed at drivers wilting in stifling conditions in Qatar last year
‘We all head into the weekend with the right intentions and sometimes it doesn’t work out. It can be frustrating, but we are all in this together.’
Looking ahead to the next race in Austin on October 20, Russell said: ‘We have a lot of work to do to understand why we’ve struggled to challenge at the front.’