Lewis Hamilton’s request to retire during the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix has sparked significant discussion and Mercedes has come out to explain why they declined his call to pull out from the chaotic race.
The incident unfolded amidst a challenging weekend for the seven-time world champion, culminating in a series of penalties that marred his performance as he navigates his final races with Mercedes before transitioning to Ferrari in 2025.
While Lewis Hamilton’s request to retire was ultimately denied by his engineer, the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix held at the Lusail International Circuit was anything but straightforward for the British driver.
From the outset of the race, Hamilton encountered troubles right away after executing a poor launch from sixth on the grid and quickly fell back to ninth position.
The race would later see a series of Safety Car deployments and penalties that affected many drivers, including Hamilton who received a five-second penalty for a false start on lap 16, which he later acknowledged as his mistake.
The situation got much worse when Williams’ Alex Albon lost his mirror going down the main straight, causing debris to scatter over the track. There was only a matter of time before someone drove over it and lo and behold Valtteri Bottas did, fortunately with no major issues.
However, Lewis Hamilton was not lucky enough to avoid running over debris on the track which resulted to a front-left puncture before the safety car was deployed—a scenario that further complicated his race strategy.
Hamilton made a pitstop for a fresh set of tyres while serving his five-second penalty but was then handed a drive-through penalty for speeding when the safety car led the field through the pitlane.
These setbacks left Hamilton visibly frustrated and questioning his car’s performance, which he described as “difficult” and lacking in grip. In a moment of desperation during the race, Hamilton radioed his team with a request to retire the car.
His Mercedes engineer, Peter Bonnington, initially denied Lewis Hamilton’s request to retire acknowledging the necessity of serving the penalties at the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix to avoid carrying them over into the next race in Abu Dhabi.
However, after continuously insisting over the team radio Lewis Hamilton’s request to retire was met with a firm “negative” from Bonnington, leading to a tense exchange where the 39-year old warned he would switch off the car upon entering the pit lane.
Bonnington: “We’ll serve the penalty in this lap.”
Hamilton: “Park the car mate. Retire the car.”
Bonnington: “Negative.”
Hamilton: “I’m switching off when I get there mate.”
Bonnington: “If you want a 5-second penalty in the next race then it’s fine. We only have to do one more lap but we will drive through the pit lane.”
Ultimately, Lewis Hamilton complied and drove through without stopping, finishing in 12th place—over 20 seconds behind points-scoring positions.
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In light of these developments, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff provided insight into why Lewis Hamilton’s request to retire was ultimately denied. Allowing him to retire would have resulted in carrying penalties into Abu Dhabi—a situation they aimed to avoid at all costs.
“The false start and the pit lane speeding, and it came to a point where it almost didn’t make any sense to continue,” Wolff said. “But if you park the car, you’re carrying this five-second penalty into Abu Dhabi, and that’s why we had to take it.
“The race was bad, and I think the car was super difficult for both of them to drive. It just didn’t turn, when the grip kicks in the understeer, there’s unbearable understeer. And both of them suffered from that. ”
In the aftermath of the disastrous 2024 Qatar Grand Prix Hamilton reflected on his performance and expressed regret over how events unfolded.
In a public apology to Mercedes, he acknowledged his mistakes: “It was a pretty bad race for me overall, but these things happen. It started off badly with my false start which was my fault and resulted in a penalty which I served during my stop.
“I then had the puncture which was just unfortunate followed by the pit lane speeding which was on me, too. I’m still standing, it’s not how you fall, it’s how you get back up, so I’ll get back up tomorrow and give it another shot next week.”
As Hamilton prepares for his final race with Mercedes, speculation about his future looms large. His move to Ferrari marks a significant shift in his career after spending over a decade with Mercedes, where he secured six of his seven world championships.
The 2024 season has been tumultuous for Hamilton and the Silver Arrows. After enduring winless seasons in 2022 and 2023, this year has seen some resurgence with two victories; however, it remains clear that the W15 car has not lived up to the standards set by its predecessors.
Hamilton currently ranks 7th in F1 drivers standings after 2024 Qatar Grand Prix while the team ranks fourth in the constructors championship as the season approaches its climax.
