Hamilton details oversteer problems in Sao Paulo start

Lewis Hamilton has described a sudden and severe oversteer problem that hampered him early in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Starting 20th, he was battling Oliver Bearman for ninth by Turn 5, but began sliding down the order by Lap 3 as Max Verstappen passed him on the way to second.

Hamilton finished a lapped ninth in his 400th grand prix, the first time he has been lapped since the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. He said the SF-26 began to oversteer on the intermediate tyres as the track dried and surface temperatures rose, with the tyres falling away after a few laps. He suggested temperature and pressure were factors.

Hamilton was the first driver to switch to slick tyres, on Lap 15, and said he had wanted to pit even earlier. He added that the track was then hard to overtake on, with only one racing line available.