The Qualifying session for the Saudi Arabian GP is finally over. It was full of drama from Nicholas Latifi’s then horror crash to Mick Schumacher’s actual horror crash. Then, Sergio Perez took the first pole position of his career ahead of the Ferrari duo and Max Verstappen. But the most shocking incident that happened in the Saudi qualifying was the exit of Lewis Hamilton after Q1.

The seven-time world champion has undoubtedly been one of the best drivers in the world. He has completely dominated Formula One in recent years. It is nearly impossible to imagine the Briton not making it out of Q1. Well, he did. And the last time when Hamilton got knocked out of Q1 was in 2017 when he crashed his car into the wall of Interlagos.

The impossible happened on Saturday qualifying of the 2022 Saudi Arabian GP. But not because of any crash or accident but of the car’s speed. The driver was struggling to get the best speed out of the car at the straights. Even after his hard tries, Hamilton ended with P16 and exited out of the Qualifying after Q1. Meanwhile, his new teammate George Russell qualified P5 for Sunday’s race in Jeddah.

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Further, the Silver Arrows driver after his exit from qualifying reported to Sky that he might be starting the race from the pitlane. The Briton also complained about the 2022 challenger W13 throughout the race, especially with the grip in the car’s rear. There are also speculations that both Mercedes drivers had different adjustments for their cars. But it seems Rusell’s one was successful compared to Hamilton’s W13.

What went wrong for Lewis Hamilton in Jeddah?

The German constructor and Hamilton have won so many races together. But it seems the dominance on the grid is coming to an end. the Brackley-based team is struggling to compete against Red Bull and Ferrari in 2022. Although Hamilton bagged a third-place finish in Bahrain, it was only because the Red Bull duo retired from the race.

Since the pre-season, Hamilton and his team have been struggling to get the pace out of the car. Further, the Brit has been complaining about extreme porpoising in the W13 since Bahrain. Hamilton was again seen struggling with the car at the straights, where he was losing a lot of speed. After the Q1 exit in Jeddah, the 7-time champion is the least favorite to win the race or even make a heroic comeback to the Top 5 in the Saudi Arabian GP.

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It is too early to say that Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton are out of the competition to fight for the championship title. But if the Silver Arrows doesn’t find the much-desired solution soon, the fans might witness the downfall of Mercedes.