Hamilton on rivals: 'I don't understand these drivers'

Lewis Hamilton had few good things to say about his competitors after Saturday's sprint race. The Briton was repeatedly pushed off the track by his rivals, which he felt was unnecessary.

Hamilton finished the sprint race in a hard-fought P8, which gave him just one point in the championship. From the moment the lights went out for the race, he struggled. " Firstly, I didn't have a good start," he said in conversation with F1.com.

Clashes with competitors

"Secondly, I don’t understand these drivers. Moving across, I don’t know if they know they are moving across, but it was just unnecessary, [Pierre Gasly] had so much space on his right," Hamilton said. Gasly hit Hamilton with his left rear wheel, causing the Frenchman to spin himself and have to rebuild the race from the back.

Hamilton says he regrets the incident and that it left him with damage as well. "I’m just grateful I could continue," he said of the starting incident. It was not the only time Hamilton was the victim of 'crossing' competitors, with Alexander Albon and Sergio Perez allegedly doing the same later in the early stages of the race, according to the Mercedes driver.

Battle with Schumacher

Hamilton eventually found himself behind Mick Schumacher, who the Briton had difficulty passing. Schumacher was able to enjoy the DRS he kept getting from teammate Kevin Magnussen. It was only a few laps before the end that the DRS disappeared and Hamilton was able to pass the German for the final point.