Seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton had a qualifying to forget at the 2023 Miami Grand Prix, with the Mercedes driver having been dumped out of the session in Q2, following an error-filled afternoon.
Hamilton will be starting Sunday’s race from P13 after making a costly error on his final lap in the second part of qualifying, where his corner speed was massively impacted in the first sector following a mistake at the opening corner.
The 38-year-old’s qualifying was challenging enough even before he’d progressed into Q2, which he only did with his final lap in Q1.
Hamilton had a brief scare about halfway through the opening part of qualifying, following a near-miss with Kevin Magnussen.
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Both Hamilton and Magnussen had been on a slow lap; however, Hamilton opted to pick up his pace much sooner than the Danish driver.
As Hamilton suddenly approached the braking point for Turn 17, Magnussen was sat on the racing-line at very low speed, resulting in Hamilton quickly swerving to the right almost directly into the wall.
The incident certainly looked sketchy on camera, with Hamilton having instantly told his team to check the front of his car.
“Check the front wing, I’ve just hit the wall,” Hamilton told race engineer Peter Bonnington.
Hamilton did enter the pits that lap but was soon back out on circuit, with the same front wing and set of Soft tyres.
The FIA did, though, note down the incident, which will be investigated after the session.
Haas will be hoping that nothing comes from the investigation, with Magnussen having qualified on the second row of the grid.
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The Dane set a banker lap in Q3 which was ultimately good enough for fourth on the grid, due to the final 1:30 of the session having been red flagged.
A late crash for Charles Leclerc saw the close of Q3 cancelled, meaning Magnussen’s early time in Q3 was set at the perfect time.
He was jubilant over the radio after being informed of his position, with the Dane having sounded almost as excited as he was last season after he claimed a shock pole position at the Brazilian Grand Prix.