Lewis Hamilton CRASH sparks late red flag at Monaco Grand Prix

Seven-time Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton crashed his Ferrari into the wall at turn three during FP3 at the Monaco Grand Prix, causing a late red flag.

Hamilton suffered a snap of oversteer as he was coming up the hill around the iconic Monaco circuit, and that sent him careering into the barriers, ruining the right-hand side of his Ferrari.

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The late red flag meant an early end to the final practice session of the weekend, and Ferrari mechanics will have a job on their hands to get Hamilton's car ready for qualifying later on Saturday.

Hamilton and his team-mate Charles Leclerc had looked to have good pace throughout the three practice sessions, and both were hoping to be candidates for claiming pole position during the all-important qualifying session.

Hamilton makes uncharacteristic error

It's rare to see seven-time world champion Hamilton's car in a wall, particularly during a practice session, but it shows how the unusual demands of the Monaco GP circuit can affect even the most experienced drivers.

Ferrari will be looking to get a new rear end onto Hamilton's SF-25 as quickly as possible, and get him out in time for the start of qualifying.

Any limit to the amount of qualifying runs a driver can do in Q1 could prove to be extremely damaging for the whole weekend, with the Monaco circuit notoriously difficult to overtake around.

It makes qualifying more important than at most circuits on the F1 calendar, and Hamilton will be fancying himself for a top-four starting position at least.

Hamilton has only outqualified his team-mate at one grand prix in the last 13 events, stretching back to last year when George Russell was still his team-mate at Mercedes.

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