Lewis Hamilton has accepted that his chances of clinching the Formula One world title are over, praising the championship leader, Kimi Antonelli, after his triumph at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Hamilton, currently in third place in the standings, suffered a setback when he had to retire on lap six due to a brake problem. Following Antonelli’s victory, Hamilton finds himself 101 points adrift of the 20-year-old Italian, who took Hamilton’s seat at Mercedes when the latter joined Ferrari.

“There’s no stopping him and Mercedes this year,” Hamilton stated. “They’ve done a phenomenal job and they deserve it.”

George Russell, Antonelli’s teammate, sits in second place, 81 points behind, with nine races left this season. Despite this, Hamilton remains optimistic about the potential of his team, asserting that more improvements are on the horizon, even if Antonelli seems unreachable.

“I think we have a good [car]. We’ve had a pretty decent car, a good car this weekend and we will continue to try and improve it and we have better results coming in the future.”

Antonelli’s win was marked by a twist of fate for Lando Norris, who experienced a setback due to the timing of a virtual safety car. Having just passed the pit entry, Norris lost crucial track position, finishing third after Antonelli took advantage of the situation.

Norris expressed frustration, calling for a reassessment of the rules regarding pit stops under the virtual safety car, emphasizing the need for fairness in racing.

“It just hurts because there was nothing more I could do as a driver. I got pole, I led the race, and to lose it for nothing in my control is not how a race should be won,” he lamented.

He advocated for changes that would enhance fairness in pit stop procedures, suggesting that the discussion should involve all drivers to reach a consensus.