When Lewis Hamilton crossed the timing line at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit at 21:45 PST on November 22, 2025, he thought it was over. It wasn’t. And that half-second of confusion cost him everything. The seven-time world champion, driving for Scuderia Ferrari, ended up last in qualifying — 20th — for the first time in his 17-year Formula 1 career. His lap time of 1:52.401 was more than two full seconds slower than teammate Charles Leclerc, and he wasn’t even the slowest driver on track. He just thought he was.
The Mistake That Changed Everything
It wasn’t a mechanical failure. Not a crash. Not even a bad tire strategy. It was a misread. Hamilton, positioned 19th in Q1, had just recovered from hitting a bollard earlier in the session, which lodged debris under his Ferrari F1-75 chassis. The track was slick from rain. Visibility was poor. And as he crossed the timing line — 175 meters before the start-finish — he saw the red gantry lights flash. He assumed the session was done. He slowed. Immediately. But the lights didn’t turn red until 0.8 seconds after he crossed. The session still had 1.2 seconds left. His race engineer, Ricardo Adami, was screaming over the radio: “Keep pushing!” “No, push!” But Hamilton, already lifting, couldn’t undo it. The chequered flag fell. His lap was done. His chance was gone. “I felt like we were quickest in practice,” Hamilton said afterward. “And then you come out of qualifying 20th. This year’s definitely the hardest year.”A Season of Struggles
This wasn’t an isolated incident. It was the latest chapter in what Hamilton has called his “worst season ever.” After leaving Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team — where he won six of his seven titles — he joined Ferrari in 2025 with high hopes. Instead, he’s been battling a car that refuses to behave. The F1-75 has been unpredictable: understeering in slow corners, oversteering in high-speed ones, lacking downforce when it matters most. The previous race in São Paulo ended in disaster: both Hamilton and Leclerc retired due to mechanical failures. That double DNF at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace was the first time Ferrari had seen both cars out in the same race since 2020. Hamilton logged 87 hours in the simulator during the three-week break between races. He studied every data point. He tweaked his driving style. He even changed his pre-race routine. None of it helped.Recovery, But No Redemption
The race offered a sliver of hope. Starting from 20th, Hamilton clawed his way to 10th by the checkered flag — a masterclass in patience and tire management. Then came the twist: both McLaren Formula 1 Team cars — driven by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri — were disqualified for technical infringements. Hamilton moved up to eighth. But he didn’t celebrate. He looked hollow. “Disconsolate” was how Sky Sports F1’s David Croft described him. And rightly so. On the medium tires, he lost 4.2 seconds per lap to Haas’s Nico Hulkenberg — a driver with no podiums this season. Something was fundamentally broken. Hamilton admitted it: “Something has gone wrong on that medium stint for Lewis and Ferrari.”
Championship Implications and the Bigger Picture
Hamilton sits sixth in the 2025 Drivers’ Championship with 198 points — 17 ahead of his former teammate, 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli, who now drives for Mercedes. Two races remain. The title is out of reach. But so is momentum. Meanwhile, Oracle Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen won the race, extending his championship lead to 63 points over Piastri. Norris, who took pole with a blistering 1:48.502, now has seven poles this season — more than any driver since 2021. For Hamilton, it’s personal. He’s never qualified outside the top 10 before. His previous worst? 13th at Monaco in 2009. He’s started 301 races. Qualified 328 times. And now, at 40, he’s staring at his first bottom-of-the-grid start.What’s Next?
Ferrari’s next race is in Qatar on December 6, 2025. The team says they’re “reviewing all systems,” including driver-to-engineer communication protocols. Hamilton has requested a full review of the timing line signal system used at street circuits. “If the lights are misleading,” he told reporters, “then we need to fix that — not just for me, but for everyone.” He’s not blaming the team. He’s blaming the system. And maybe, just maybe, that’s the most telling sign of all.
Historical Context: A Legend’s Low Point
Hamilton’s career has been defined by excellence. He’s won 103 races. He’s held the record for most poles, most podiums, most points. He’s raced against Schumacher, Vettel, Rosberg — and beat them all. But this? This is different. In 2007, as a rookie, he qualified second in Monaco. In 2014, he won 11 races in a row. In 2020, he clinched his seventh title at the Turkish Grand Prix in the rain — on slicks, no less. Now? He’s the slowest. In Las Vegas. On a track he loved. In front of 300,000 fans. And he knows it. “It obviously can’t get much worse than that,” he said at the post-race press conference. And for once, he wasn’t being dramatic.Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Lewis Hamilton misread the timing lights?
Hamilton misinterpreted the red gantry lights that activated 0.8 seconds after he crossed the timing line as the end of Q1. In Formula 1, those lights typically signal session end, but at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit, there was a 0.8-second delay built into the system — a quirk not clearly communicated to drivers. His radio engineer, Ricardo Adami, was shouting to keep going, but Hamilton, already lifting off, couldn’t recover in time.
How does this affect Scuderia Ferrari’s championship chances?
While Ferrari still leads the Constructors’ Championship, Hamilton’s consistent underperformance — including two DNFs in the last two races — is eroding their lead. With only two races left, they’re now 34 points behind Red Bull in the team standings. Hamilton’s inability to consistently score points puts pressure on teammate Charles Leclerc to carry more of the load, increasing internal team tension.
Has any other F1 legend ever qualified last in their career?
No driver with more than 200 career starts has ever qualified 20th. The closest was Jacques Villeneuve in 2006, who qualified 21st at Monza — but he had only 178 starts then. Hamilton’s 328 qualifying sessions make this unprecedented. Even Michael Schumacher, who retired with 307 starts, never qualified outside the top 15.
What’s wrong with the Ferrari F1-75?
Drivers report inconsistent aerodynamic balance — the car understeers in slow corners but becomes unstable in high-speed sweeps. Wind tunnel data suggests the front wing design doesn’t adapt well to changing track temperatures, which is critical on street circuits like Las Vegas. Ferrari’s engineers admit they’ve struggled to replicate Friday practice performance on Saturday qualifying runs, a recurring issue this season.
Is Hamilton considering retirement after this season?
Hamilton has not indicated retirement. He’s publicly stated his goal is to finish the season strong and evaluate his future afterward. But privately, sources close to him say he’s questioning whether he can still win at the highest level with the current Ferrari setup. His focus now is on helping the team fix the F1-75 — not on his own legacy.
What changes might Ferrari make before the Qatar Grand Prix?
Ferrari plans to introduce a revised front wing and revised suspension geometry for the Qatar race. They’re also testing a new data visualization system for drivers to better interpret timing line signals during live sessions. Team principal Frédéric Vasseur confirmed they’re working with the FIA to standardize light-response timing across all street circuits to prevent future confusion.