Lewis Hamilton Reacts to Dutch GP Crash: "Very Unusual to Not Finish a Race"

Lewis Hamilton crashed out of the 2025 Dutch Grand Prix on lap 23 at Zandvoort, marking his first DNF of the season. Despite feeling the Ferrari was making real progress this weekend, his race ended prematurely.

Why it matters:

Hamilton's early exit and subsequent safety car period severely impacted Ferrari. His teammate Charles Leclerc, who pitted moments before the safety car was deployed, had his race compromised. This ultimately led to a double DNF for Ferrari after Leclerc was later hit by Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli.

What happened:

Hamilton was running in seventh when light rain began to fall on the coastal track. As he went up the banked Turn 3, his SF25 touched a slippery painted surface on the wet asphalt. He initially managed to control the snap of oversteer but, with the car pointing too far right, he hit the barrier at the corner exit. He then brought his car to a stop on the side of the track and exited.

What he said:

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the incident, Hamilton expressed uncertainty about the exact cause. "I'm really not sure. I will have to look back at it," he stated. "As I went up the bank, the rear snapped out and I couldn't recover." He added that the car felt "a bit twitchy" but overall, he was "much happier" with its performance compared to previous races. "I think we made real progress this weekend. My pace was looking pretty decent. I was catching George [Russell] and I think I had the pace of a few cars ahead of me." Reflecting on the DNF, he remarked, "Very unusual to not finish a race and to go out so early, it’s definitely not great but it is what it is."