Lewis Hamilton says he “should have been on pole position” after qualifying only tenth for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Hamilton led both Friday’s practice sessions and was fastest in Q2 as Mercedes showed their best form since the summer break in August in the cold conditions in Vegas.

But in Q3, Hamilton got stuck on his first run in the middle sector and suffered a moment of oversteer at turn three on his second attempt, running wide and having his lap time scrubbed. Even without the track limits violation he would still have been 10th.

His Mercedes teammate George Russell took pole position from Carlos Sainz, leaving Hamilton frustrated.

“I should have been on pole, but I’m not, so it is what it is. C’est la vie, you live to fight another day,” he told Air sports.

“It is what it is. It’s been a good weekend so far, so I’ll do my best tomorrow. Congratulations to George.”

Hamilton has struggled in qualifying all season and trails Russell 17-5 in the qualifying match against Mercedes.

The seven-time world champion, who will switch to Ferrari early next year, says the handling of his Mercedes in Q3 was not the same compared to the other parts of qualifying.

“The car felt different in Q3 and the stability wasn’t there for some reason. But I had it in all the other sessions,” he told the written media.

“But in the end I couldn’t put the laps together.”

Hamilton: I’ll see what I can do on Sunday

Hamilton admitted during his arrival in Las Vegas that he wanted to leave Mercedes early after a torrid weekend at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

He made comments on team radio at the end of the race suggesting it could be his “last time” driving for the Silver Arrows, before telling Sky Sports he could “enjoy going on holiday”.

Despite another difficult qualifying that puts him in the background for the Grand Prix of Las Vegas on Sunday at 6:00 a.m., live continues Sky Sports F1 And Sky Sports main eventHamilton takes comfort in the fact that he had a strong pace.

“I’m really far back, so I’ll see what I can do from there,” he said.

“Relegation will be crucial. We had an eventful race here last year.”

Why is Mercedes fast again?

Mercedes won the Austrian, British and Belgian Grand Prix last summer before their performance declined, falling behind McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull.

However, Russell had strong pace in the rain in Sao Paulo, so there is a clear trend of the Silver Arrows enjoying cooler or wet conditions.

Team boss Toto Wolff said: “We just need winter times!

“We need Silverstone and Spa in the rain and cold, and then Las Vegas at midnight. Our car comes to life when there is a lack of grip and it is cold.

“The feedback we get from the drivers is that it feels good and that you hear many more complaints from other cars about a lack of grip.”

Sky Sports F1’s live GP schedule in Las Vegas

Sunday November 24
4:30 am: Grand Prix Sunday: build-up to the Las Vegas GP*
6am: THE GRAND PRIZE OF LAS VEGAS*
8am: Checkered flag: Las Vegas GP response*
9:00 am: Ted’s notebook*

*also live on the Sky Sports Main Event

Watch the Las Vegas Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event on Sunday at 6am, where Max Verstappen could seal the championship. Stream the last three F1 races and more with a NOW Sports Month membership – No contract, cancel anytime