Lewis Hamilton endured another difficult race weekend as his struggles with Ferrari carried on at the São Paulo Grand Prix. Starting outside the top ten, it was clear the British driver faced an uphill battle and that proved true from the very beginning.

Hamilton dropped to 18th after light contact with Carlos Sainz at Turn 1 and, moments later, collided with Franco Colapinto on the main straight. The incident left his front wing badly damaged and forced an early pit stop for repairs. He was also handed a time penalty for the collision with the Alpine driver before Ferrari ultimately decided to retire the car due to damage.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, Hamilton admitted the result was hard to take.

“It’s a nightmare. I’ve been living it for a while. The flip between the dream of driving for this amazing team and then the nightmare of the results that we’ve had, the ups and downs, it’s challenging,” he said.

Despite the disappointment, the seven-time world champion underlined his determination to keep pushing.

“Tomorrow I’ll get back up,” Hamilton added.

“I’ll keep training, I’ll keep working with the team. I really wanted to get them good points this weekend, but I’ll come back as strong as I can in the next race and try to recover,” the British driver concluded.

After 21 races with Ferrari, Hamilton is still chasing his first podium for the Scuderia. He currently sits sixth in the Drivers’ Championship standings.