F1: Lewis Hamilton felt his first pitstop at Qatar Grand Prix was "way too early"

F1 Grand Prix of Qatar - Lewis Hamilton takes a right-hander during the main race on Sunday.
F1 Grand Prix of Qatar - Lewis Hamilton takes a right-hander during the main race on Sunday.

Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton felt his team pitted him too early in the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday. The seven-time world champion was heard complaining over the radio as he felt his tires had plenty of life in them.

Hamilton reduced the gap to championship rival Max Verstappen to only eight points after winning the inaugural Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday. The Briton appeared untouchable throughout the weekend as he out-qualified Verstappen by nearly half a second and then dominated the race from start to finish.

During the race, Hamilton was heard questioning Mercedes' pit strategy. However, Mercedes race engineer Peter Bonnington believed the early pit stop was needed to cover off a potential undercut by Verstappen and RedBull.

Drivers sometimes comment on the strategies employed by their teams, but often lack the information needed to make a solid decision. Hamilton's complaints can be heard in the video below:

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Mercedes' strategy worked perfectly as Hamilton finished the race in P1 without being troubled by the rest of the grid. Verstappen took second place, while Fernando Alonso finished third.

Lewis Hamilton seemingly has upper hand going into final two races of the season

With back-to-back wins in Brazil and Qatar, the momentum is currently with Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes heading into the final two races of the season. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff emphasized that the Lewis Hamilton of old had "woken up" after the dramatic weekend at Interlagos.

Ralf Schumacher, a six-time Grand Prix winner and brother of F1 legend Michael Schumacher, also feels Mercedes has the edge at the moment.

"The Mercedes is currently the more stable package," Schumacher said.

The 46-year-old feels Verstappen needs a huge slice of luck in order to dethrone Hamilton.

"Maybe he has had the luck he has lacked so far. If he had this luck at the beginning of the season, he might already be world champion," Schumacher added.

The final two races of the season will take place in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi.

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Edited by Arvind Sriram