Drama for Mercedes: Hamilton crashes in qualifying

Lewis Hamilton did not have a good end to the Austrian Grand Prix qualifying session. The Brit suffered a crash in the final session, forcing his team to work hard to get his car ready for Saturday's sprint race.

Mercedes was doing well in Austria. The team managed Q3 with both Hamilton and George Russell, with the former hoping to regain one of the front places on the grid. It did not work out that way for Hamilton, however.

In the final five minutes of the race, Hamilton lost control of the car and spun into the gravel trap. As a result, Hamilton was unable to avoid hitting the wall and had to abandon qualifying.

Lewis Hamilton has gone off in the middle sector! He's OUT of qualifying! pic.twitter.com/TGo6SiGzqs

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 8, 2022

Red flag in Austria stops qualifying

Race control decided to fly a red flag temporarily due to the parts on the track. The drivers will have to wait and see when they can get back on track. The battle for pole position is expected to be between Ferrari and Red Bull Racing.