Damon Hill spotted ‘little bit naughty’ Lewis Hamilton action during the Mexico City Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton came home to finish fourth at the Mexico City Grand Prix in a weekend that was overshadowed by more penalty drama between the title protagonists.

Hamilton came into Mexico City off the back of a miserable weekend at the United States Grand Prix. The Brit was eliminated in Q1 on Saturday and just three laps into the race, he spun his Mercedes into the gravel and out of the race.

The Mexico City Grand Prix also saw big names knocked out in the first part of qualifying. This time, it was home hero Sergio Perez and Oscar Piastri who fell short at the first hurdle, giving Hamilton one less Red Bull and McLaren to compete with.

But despite this, the 39-year-old still struggled to take advantage as he ended up sixth behind his teammate George Russell, who extended his lead in the qualifying battle to a huge 15-5.

Hamilton was seen to have made a mistake in the final sector as he corrected a major slide, ultimately leaving him more than seven-tenths down on polesitter Carlos Sainz. David Croft was left questioning Toto Wolff’s reaction to the error as the Austrian was seen bowing his head in frustration in the garage.

Damon Hill left feeling that Lewis Hamilton’s late defence on George Russell was a ‘little bit naughty’

There were tense battles throughout the Mexico City Grand Prix with several divebombs down the straights and drivers forcing each other off the circuit.

Max Verstappen was hit with a 20-second time penalty after he was judged to have run Lando Norris off the track at turn four and turn 10. Meanwhile, Hamilton was engaged in a battle with his Mercedes teammate Russell in the early and closing stages of the race.

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On lap 15, Russell got by the 39-year-old into the first corner, with Hamilton making a late attempt to defend but to no avail. After the round of pit stops, the seven-time champion found his way back through to take fourth.

While his late change of direction went unpunished by the stewards, Damon Hill could not help but take notice, and speaking on the Sky Sports F1 Podcast, the 1996 champion was left feeling the move was a ‘little bit naughty.’

“So, the stewards, if it was just a driver looking at that, let’s say Martin Brundle was the guy advising the stewards.

“He would say ‘I don’t like the look of that.’ Which he did, in the Grand Prix. He will look at it and go ‘no that’s not right. That can’t be right.’

“And we can also apply that view to, say Lewis’ late change of direction when he was being passed by George Russell down the straight. And I have to say, I saw that and I just thought ‘that was a little bit naughty.”

What will Lewis Hamilton be thinking about Ferrari’s current performance?

While Mercedes grabbed a good haul of points in Mexico City with fourth and fifth, it is clear the Silver Arrows do not quite have the performance to match Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull.

Ferrari proved again to be the fastest package. After grabbing a one-two finish in Austin, Sainz took his second win of the season from pole in Mexico while Charles Leclerc came home third behind Norris.

Giedo van der Garde believes Hamilton is focused on Ferrari already as he approaches his final four races with Mercedes. With the Maranello squad’s current performance – which has seen them take second from Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship – the Brit has every reason to be excited about next season.

Hamilton will replace Sainz in 2025 with the Spaniard heading to Williams. With his win in Mexico, it will give fans more ammunition to argue that Ferrari have made a mistake with their driver line-up.