Ferrari says it will conduct a thorough investigation after a brake system failure forced Lewis Hamilton out of the Spanish Grand Prix, ending his run of points finishes in every race so far this season.

Hamilton had started fourth at the Madring circuit but pulled out of the race after only six laps. Speaking afterward, the seven-time world champion explained that the brake pedal suddenly dropped as he approached Turn 5, leaving him with too much speed and forcing him to clip a barrier. He said the pedal briefly felt normal again before the same problem resurfaced a few corners later.

Ferrari's pit wall tried to intervene and correct the issue in real time, but the fault returned, leaving the team no choice but to retire the car.

Team principal Fred Vasseur admitted after the race that Ferrari does not yet have a clear explanation for what went wrong. "At this stage, we don't yet know the exact cause of the brake system issue that forced him to retire, but we will investigate it thoroughly," he told media, including RacingNews365. "The pedal was long. We tried to fix it from the pit wall, and then it happened again."

A long brake pedal is usually a symptom of lost hydraulic pressure. Ferrari has dealt with intermittent brake-feel complaints throughout the season, though it is not yet known whether this latest failure is connected to those earlier troubles.

While Hamilton's race unraveled, teammate Charles Leclerc salvaged a solid result, crossing the line fourth, 29.116 seconds behind race winner Kimi Antonelli and just 0.713 seconds ahead of George Russell.

Leclerc's result came from a bold strategic gamble. Ferrari split its approach between the two cars, sending Hamilton out on softs while Leclerc started on hards and stretched his opening stint to nearly 50 laps, hoping a safety car or red flag would shake up the order.

"We knew there was a reasonable chance of a safety car or a red flag, so we decided to extend the stint and keep that opportunity open," Vasseur said, adding that a red flag could have put Ferrari in contention for the win, while a late safety car might have opened the door to third. Neither materialized, but Vasseur praised Leclerc's "very solid performance" and said the gamble was worth taking.

Hamilton remains third in the drivers' standings with 191 points, while Leclerc sits fifth on 167 as Formula 1 heads to Azerbaijan for the next round on September 26.

Source: racingnews365.com