“Karma for that turn 1 incident”; “I'm sure Lewis Hamilton is fuming now over 1 point” - F1 fans react to Mercedes star’s penalty 

Lewis Hamilton was penalized post-race at the Sprint for the 2024 F1 Miami GP, dropping him out of points into P16 despite his P8 finish on track.

The safety car was triggered on the opening lap of the Sprint in Miami earlier today after Lando Norris DNFed on the first corner of the track. The cars were made to cross through the pits because of the obstruction on the track, and as recorded by the stewards, Hamilton exceeded the pitlane speed limit.

After an investigation into the issue, Hamilton was awarded a drive-through penalty, but since the Sprint had ended, 20 seconds were added to his final race time instead. He finished in P8, but the added time moved him down to P16 with no points.

Fans on social media pointed this out and some called it "karma" for the first lap incident. The Mercedes driver started in P12 and dived on the opening lap into the first turn, trying to gain places. In the process, he made contact with Fernando Alonso, who had already hit his teammate, Lance Stroll. The second Aston Martin rammed into the McLaren of Lando Norris, causing him to be disqualified from the race.

While the two Aston Martins had already made contact by the time Hamilton did, some fans felt it was the Mercedes driver's fault.

"Karma for that turn 1 incident," one fan wrote on X.

"I'm sure Hamilton is fuming now over 1 point," wrote a user.

"And should be getting a penalty for the start of the race. Hopefully Aston and McLaren push the issue," wrote another fan about the first lap incident.

Some fans also criticized the FIA for penalizing the Mercedes driver with a major delay.

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Mercedes' disappointing pace keeps Lewis Hamilton away from the top at Miami

The qualifying session for the Sprint did not look so competitive for the Brackley-based outfit after both their drivers were eliminated in SQ2.

Lewis Hamilton started the race in P12 with his teammate George Russell in P11. While the former managed to push himself till P8, the post-race penalty took him out of the points. Meanwhile, Russell could only finish in P12.

Mercedes did not adapt well to the new aerodynamic regulations introduced in 2022. Their current challenger, the W15, was a supposed improvement on the W14 and the W13. This season has also marked their worst start in over a decade.

This continued disappointing performance was analyzed as one of the reasons for Lewis Hamilton to quit the team at the end of this season. While the Brit did mention his aim to finish his final season with the team at a high, he has remained out of contention for the top spots in the initial rounds.