David Coulthard calls Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari performance at the Las Vegas Grand Prix ’embarrassing’

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Lewis Hamilton will start from the very back of the grid at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, leading David Coulthard to slam the Ferrari star for his ’embarrassing’ performance.

It marks the first time since 2017 that Lewis Hamilton will start a Formula 1 Grand Prix with the rest of the grid ahead of him, which has further added to the woes that he has experienced during his debut season as a Ferrari driver.

Bernie Collins heard total ‘confusion’ over Hamilton’s Ferrari team radio as he exited Q1 for the second time so far this season.

The Brit’s race engineer on the Ferrari pit-wall failed to tell him that another lap was required, reopening the dialogue of the poor communication between Hamilton and Scuderia personnel that has been prevalent throughout the 2025 campaign.

READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton told he is missing a vital ingredient in his relationship with one Ferrari colleague

David Coulthard slams Lewis Hamilton’s performance in qualifying at the Las Vegas Grand Prix

Jenson Button believes Hamilton lost focus at a crucial time during the dying stages of Q1. The start line and finish line are in two separate spots on the pit-straight, leading the Ferrari star’s former teammate to question whether Hamilton had lost track of which one was which.

In his post-session debrief with Channel 4, after Lando Norris took pole position at the Las Vegas GP, David Coulthard slammed the seven-time world champion, whilst also questioning how many more setbacks Hamilton can take.

The former F1 driver said, “In boxing terms, it’s a little bit like being punch-drunk. How many punches can you take? How many blows can you take?

“It’s embarrassing for Lewis to be 20th. I know there was that yellow flag, and it’s not a reflection of his true pace.”

Despite the awful result, Coulthard highlighted a key trait of Hamilton’s that could see him prove his worth in Sunday’s Grand Prix, adding, “What’s he brilliant at? Picking himself up, and coming back.”

READ MORE: Charles Leclerc’s ’embarrassing’ radio gives Lewis Hamilton an excuse for Las Vegas Grand Prix woes

David Coulthard tells Ferrari that they need to be ‘frank’ with Lewis Hamilton after John Elkann’s comments

The 40-year-old’s sub-par performance comes after John Elkann publicly slammed Ferrari’s driver line-up for their comments to the media when things go wrong.

Hamilton’s comments in Las Vegas show that he has already taken them on board, and Coulthard added his opinion onto the matter ahead of the qualifying shootout.

He said, “I think he’s maybe basking in the glory of the fact that Ferrari have won the World sportscar championship. They’re going, ‘We haven’t done that for a very long time, look how great the Ferrari brand is, and suddenly the drivers are complaining all the time.’

“But you’ve got to put your trust in them. Charles [Leclerc] is an experienced guy, and Lewis is one of the most experienced guys. They’re not going to complain about the car just for the fun of it. The facts are it hasn’t been performing.

“Maybe it’s a good thing in terms of [Lewis’] relationship with John and how it’s developing. This is his first year with the team. Charles has been there as a young rookie coming through, and he’s taken a lot of success there, a lot of pole positions and victories.

“We’re still waiting for that first proper victory for Lewis. He got the Sprint win in China. Out of negativity, there’s always some positivity that comes from it. Sometimes you’ve got to be very frank with your comments.”