Lewis Hamilton admits costly mistakes after Hungarian GP penalty but questions Ferrari's decisive pit-stop call

Lewis Hamilton has accepted responsibility for another costly penalty at the Hungarian Grand Prix but believes Ferrari's late strategic decision ultimately placed him in a position where the mistake became possible.

The seven-time world champion finished fifth in Budapest after receiving a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane, marking his fourth stewards' sanction in the last three Formula 1 race weekends.

While Hamilton admitted he must eliminate the errors from his driving, he questioned Ferrari's decision to bring him into the pits during the late Virtual Safety Car period.

Ferrari's gamble changes the race

Hamilton had inherited second place after McLaren's Oscar Piastri retired with a gearbox failure, triggering a Virtual Safety Car with just 14 laps remaining.

Ferrari immediately called Hamilton into the pits for fresh tyres.

The decision dropped him behind Max Verstappen, who stayed out, while Mercedes championship leader Kimi Antonelli also emerged ahead after making his own stop just before the VSC.

Moments later, Hamilton's race became even more complicated.

Pit-lane speeding proves costly

As Hamilton exited the pit lane, race stewards placed him under investigation for exceeding the speed limit.

Ferrari's pit limiter was found to have exceeded the 80 km/h limit by just 0.1 km/h, resulting in a five-second time penalty.

Although Hamilton spent the closing laps trying to recover positions, he was unable to pass Antonelli or build enough of a gap over teammate Charles Leclerc.

Once the penalty was applied after the chequered flag, Hamilton dropped behind Leclerc into fifth place.

Hamilton: "We shouldn't have taken the stop"

Reflecting on the race, Hamilton admitted he disagreed with Ferrari's late strategy.

"I definitely don't think we should have taken the stop," he said.

"The call came just before the pit-lane entry, so there wasn't really time to debate it. You trust the team."

Looking back, Hamilton believes his tyres still had enough life to reach the finish.

"In hindsight, my tyres were totally fine. I probably would have lost second to Max, but I think I could have held onto third."

Instead, the extra stop exposed him to the pit-lane speeding infringement that ultimately cost valuable championship points.

Penalties continue to pile up

The Hungarian GP marked another frustrating weekend for Hamilton.

On Saturday he had already received a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri during qualifying, dropping him from second to fifth on the starting grid.

It followed two consecutive five-second penalties in previous races:

• A collision with George Russell at the Belgian Grand Prix.

• A jump start at Silverstone.

Those incidents have significantly damaged Hamilton's title challenge during an otherwise competitive first half of the season.

Championship battle becoming more difficult

Hamilton's fifth-place finish allowed Kimi Antonelli to extend his championship lead to 50 points heading into Formula 1's summer break.

Despite the setback, Hamilton insists Ferrari still has every chance of fighting for both championships during the second half of the year.

"I am massively grateful to the team because they've done a great job building this car," he said.

"The last three races from my side haven't been great. There have been lots of mistakes."

Determined to return stronger

Hamilton openly admitted that his own errors have become a recurring issue.

"A mistake at Silverstone cost dearly. Then Belgium, and now this weekend."

The Ferrari driver vowed to use the summer break to reset mentally before Formula 1 resumes in the Netherlands next month.

"I've got to work hard and make sure I don't give the stewards any more opportunities to hand me penalties."

Fine margins define modern Formula 1

Sky Sports analyst Martin Brundle defended the decision to penalise Hamilton despite the tiny margin.

Exceeding the pit-lane speed limit by 0.1 km/h may appear insignificant, but Brundle argued the regulations leave officials no room for interpretation.

"If 0.1 km/h is acceptable, then where do you stop?" Brundle said.

"It's painful, it's harsh, but those are the rules."

For Hamilton, another weekend that began with hopes of victory instead ended with more frustration—and another reminder that in Formula 1, even the smallest mistake can carry enormous consequences.