"First time seeing grandpa's fighting": Fans react to Lewis Hamilton's hilarious but subtle dig at Fernando Alonso's rant against him

Fans reacted as Lewis Hamilton posted a silent but sarcastic reply to Fernando Alonso's radio message during the 2025 F1 Singapore GP. The two were involved in a close battle in the race, fighting for P7, and while Hamilton did finish ahead, he was penalized and dropped to P8.

Ferrari struggled for pace once again this season as Hamilton was pushed amongst the midfield cars. He had a strong hold on P7 for most of the race; however, he found himself under pressure from Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard chased him down, but as the brakes on Lewis Hamilton's car started fading on the final lap, he cut two consecutive chicanes. Many assumed that he did it not to let Alonso overtake him.

Reacting to his cheeky maneuver, Alonso dropped a message on his team radio, continuously repeating, "I cannot believe it."

"Oh, f*cking hell, man. I cannot believe it. I cannot f*cking believe it, I cannot f*cking believe it. I mean, I cannot f*cking believe it. Is it safe to drive with no brakes?"

A day after the race, Lewis Hamilton took to his Instagram and posted a video from a TV show with the character repeating the phrase "I cannot believe it," and captioned the video "18 years of..."

Fans dropped hilarious reactions to his story, with many assuming that this referred to the two drivers' long-time rivalry on the track.

Huzayfa Dadabhay

@huzayfautd

@autosport First time seeing grandpa's fighting

AKA CharlesP

@sainz_x_lecrerc

@autosport I love how these two old man keep loving-hating each other.

Theo M-T

@Mason_T75

@autosport The perfect response🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣👏👏👏👏

At the same time, many argued that the two drivers were never in a rivalry. Hamilton fans mentioned that he was always the stronger driver, with Alonso fans saying the opposite.

Nando

@Nando__14__

@autosport At least Alonso is ahead of his teammate in the championship and won races at Ferrari

Ibiki

@Ibikiya

@autosport Rivality? There is one man with 7 titles and countless records vs an payaso grumpy old man who didn’t win a single race for a decade 😂😂😂 I CANNOT BELIEVE IT.

Kate

@K_B_47_

@autosport Wouldn’t call it a rivalry when it’s so one sided.

The stewards reviewed the footage from the race and deemed that Lewis Hamilton had indeed gained an advantage by cutting the corners. Subsequently, he was given a five-second time penalty, dropping him to P8, and Alonso gained a spot in the race result.

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No improvement expected for Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc as Ferrari driver drops disappointing verdict

Ferrari has struggled with pace for most of the 2025 F1 season. It was especially difficult for Lewis Hamilton, who had to acquaint himself to adapt to the car's driving style. As a result, he failed to score even a podium finish so far in the season. Although he was expected to showcase major improvement in the later stages of the season, it hasn't quite happened.

Moreover, Charles Leclerc recently revealed that Ferrari is "massively struggling," and the team wouldn't be introducing any major upgrades this season.

"It's tough, it's very tough. We are not strong at the moment and we are struggling massively with the car. It's not easy," Leclerc said in Singapore. "I wish I could say that I'm positive for the rest of the season, I don't think there's anything in the car that proves to me that we are going to do a step forward."

He added:

"I think this is the reality of our situation at the moment. I don't quite know how to turn that situation around because we don't have new parts or anything coming to the car."

Lewis Hamilton's best finish this season is stuck at P4; meanwhile, his teammate has managed to score multiple podium finishes. However, both drivers have struggled for pace lately, with Ferrari shifting its focus to the 2026 car.