Debate | Could Hamilton's decision cost him the F1 championship?

Lewis Hamilton did not have a perfect race in Turkey. The Briton started from P11 on the grid after an internal combustion engine change and he eventually finished fifth. Had Hamilton handled it differently, his race might have been different.

It could be argued that Hamilton's late pit stop cost him a better finishing position. The seven-time world champion said himself that he thought he could finish the race on the same set of intermediate tyres he had started the race on. The tyres of Esteban Ocon, the only driver to finish the race on the same set of tyres, looked completely written off. Mercedes didn't want to take the risk of things going wrong and let Hamilton come in towards the end of the race.

If Hamilton had pitted earlier, as Mercedes had asked him to, he would probably have finished higher than P5. He would have been able to do more laps on the new intermediate tyres, which would probably have brought them more to life. Hamilton's pace was fast throughout the race, so an overtake on Charles Leclerc and maybe even Sergio Perez would have been definitely in the cards.

Every point counts in this championship

It could have earned the Brit a fourth or third place. He is now six points behind title rival Max Verstappen. In a championship where the gap between the two drivers has been small all season, Hamilton's decision not to come in earlier could cost him dearly. If the final race is just a few points away, the extra points from a third or fourth place might have helped.

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