Mercedes star driver Lewis Hamilton’s misery continues at the Qatar Grand Prix after the disappointments of Sprint qualifying. However, this time around, it wasn’t the speed of his race car but rather the sketchy officiating by the race control that resulted in another sub-par performance for the 7-time champion.

The streak of penalties started at the start of the race as FIA investigated the Mercedes driver for a false start before awarding him a five-second penalty. He dropped down as low as 9th but was able to bounce back with an early safety car restart. When it looked like he had dodged a bullet, Hamilton landed himself in trouble again.

10 laps later, Lewis Hamilton picked up a puncture when Valtteri Bottas ran over a lost wing mirror on the main straights. This resulted in shards of sharp debris spread across the racetrack. But the race control didn’t intervene and let the race go green. Next thing you know, Hamilton’s car had a puncture, and he had to return to the pits, losing his track position. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz suffered a similar fate.

Well, the misery run for Hamilton didn’t stop there, as he was hit with a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pit lane. “Park the car, mate,” Hamilton responded after learning about his speeding penalty. He returned to the track at the rear end of the grid and could only manage a P12 finish off the 15 drivers. Well, this mess could’ve been avoided if it wasn’t for the punctures and the close call of his false start penalties.

Fans certainly believed FIA hindered a chance for Hamilton to have a strong finish in Qatar and even aimed digs at President Mohammed Ben Sulayem.

FIA has lost the plot completely

FIA is at odds with drivers and the F1 racing community. President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been firm on his stance and has made some controversial decisions in firing stewards and race directors recently. Now it is hard to speculate if the race directors calling the Qatar were overburdened with responsibilities. But, this fan believed all of this chaos was because of FIA’s governing policy. “MBS [Mohammed Ben Sulayem] and the FIA are showing once again they’re a bunch of clowns ruining this sport for the sake of manufactured entertainment, hence the ridiculous inconsistencies with penalties (i.e. the totally bogus one Max got)”

Niels Wittich’s departure from FIA certainly caused a lot of stir. Moreover, former steward, Tim Mayers also shared his take on how Ben Sulayem fired him because of a personal vendetta. In all, four senior and long-serving members at FIA were shown the exit door by FIA this year. And, this seems to have taken a toll on actual races, according to this race fan. “Yep, let’s put the blame where it belongs. MBS. Sacked an experienced race director for no reason and we get this sh-t.”

FIA has been mired by more and more controversies as the 2024 season is coming to an end. We saw the likes of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris being penalized for the use of foul language. Meanwhile, trusted race directors and stewards have been fired by the FIA. Ideally, the off-track decision and change in personnel should affect the racing, but that doesn’t seem to be the case after witnessing the Qatar GP. “FIA is such a joke seriously,” a Reddit user added.

Speak about the massive repercussion of the decision by race control, it might have put a huge dent in Ferrari’s hopes for the Constructor’s title. Alongside Lewis Hamilton, Sainz also suffered a similar setback with a puncture on his race car with the broken glass on the race track. He tried his best and registered a P6 finish, but a podium finish would’ve been a better outcome with the championship in sight. Charles Leclerc did finish runner-up but that was cancelled out by Oscar Piastri’s podium finish in P3. Going into the Abu Dhabi GP, Ferrari is trailing by 21 points and would need a perfect finish along with a bad day for McLaren to help them seal the title. “FIA might’ve just cost Ferrari the championship.”

The Red Bull supporters were relieved that Max Verstappen had already secured his championship. If in case, the title race with Lando Norris had gone down the wire, the FIA could’ve played a spoiler in deciding the champion. We all know what happened back in 2021 in Qatar where Verstappen found himself on the sweet end of things. “clownshow from the FIA all around this weekend. Good thing the wdc is decide.”

With the Constructor’s title on the line, it will be interesting to see how FIA officiates the high-octane race in Abu Dhabi. There just might be a late twist in the Constructor’s champion race.