Lewis Hamilton intends to contact George Russell following their opening-lap collision at the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix, an incident that ended the Mercedes driver’s race and earned the Ferrari driver a five-second penalty.
The former Mercedes team-mates came together while fighting for position on the approach to Les Combes. George Russell was sent into a spin and became stranded in the gravel, bringing his race to an immediate end and inflicting another damaging setback on his championship campaign. Lewis Hamilton continued despite sustaining damage to his Ferrari and eventually recovered to finish fourth.
Lewis Hamilton plans to contact George Russell after Spa collision
Speaking after the race, Lewis Hamilton explained that he planned to send George Russell a message later in the evening to make sure everything was all right between them. He noted that drivers and team personnel tend to leave the circuit quickly after the event, making a private message the most practical way to speak.
Lewis Hamilton acknowledged that colliding with a team-mate or a former team was always something a driver wanted to avoid. He emphasised the respect he retained for Mercedes and George Russell, while accepting that the contact had nevertheless happened during their opening-lap battle.
George Russell was visibly emotional when he appeared in the media pen after retiring. However, the Mercedes driver did not place the blame entirely on Lewis Hamilton and instead described the collision as a racing incident. The stewards reached a different conclusion, determining that Lewis Hamilton had caused the contact and issuing a five-second time penalty, which he served during his pit stop.
The incident and its immediate consequences were covered in detail after Lewis Hamilton and George Russell collided on the first lap at Spa. The FIA later provided further clarification regarding the decision, explaining why Lewis Hamilton was penalised while Charles Leclerc escaped punishment in a separate incident.
Five-second penalty damages Lewis Hamilton’s podium chances
The time penalty significantly reduced Lewis Hamilton’s prospects of securing a podium, but his pace remained one of the more encouraging elements of Ferrari’s afternoon. The 41-year-old climbed back to fourth place despite the collision damage and the time lost while serving his punishment.
Charles Leclerc completed a strong overall result for Ferrari by finishing second. The Monegasque driver challenged near the front and secured another important podium, leaving Ferrari with two cars inside the leading four positions. The full sequence of events is examined in the Ferrari Belgian Grand Prix race review.
Lewis Hamilton’s race was also affected by damage and a missed front-wing adjustment during his pit stop. That additional setback made his recovery to fourth more notable, although it prevented Ferrari from fully exploiting the pace available from his SF-26. A closer technical analysis explains how the incomplete front-wing change compromised Lewis Hamilton’s Spa performance.
Ferrari’s progress continues at difficult circuits
Beyond the disappointment surrounding the collision, Lewis Hamilton viewed Ferrari’s overall Belgian Grand Prix performance as further evidence that the SF-26 was improving. He suggested that the team’s competitive showing demonstrated that the car was developing in the correct direction.
Lewis Hamilton credited Ferrari’s personnel for continuing to introduce improvements from one race weekend to the next. That progress was particularly significant because Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps had both been expected to expose weaknesses in the Ferrari package, yet the team produced strong performances at each circuit.
Ferrari therefore left Belgium with a mixture of frustration and encouragement. Lewis Hamilton lost a possible podium through the penalty and intended to speak privately with George Russell, but his recovery and Charles Leclerc’s second place provided further evidence that the team’s recent development work was delivering meaningful gains.
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