Lewis Hamilton's powerful three-word message revealed after Spa shocker

Mercedes F1 star Kimi Antonelli has revealed how Lewis Hamilton was on hand to offer much-needed words of support following a disastrous performance at last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix.

The Italian youngster made a number of big mistakes during Q1 on Saturday afternoon, and paid the price with an early exit from the session, appearing visibly upset in the media pen afterwards.

However, he has revealed that Hamilton - who also failed to progress to Q2 after his best lap was deleted due to exceeding track limits - came to speak with him at the Mercedes motorhome to provide encouragement.

Speaking to media including GPFans in the paddock following Sunday’s race, the 18-year-old revealed that the seven-time champion had comforted him after a shocking session for both drivers, telling Antonelli to 'just keep believing'.

"He came to say hi to the team, and definitely we had a couple of words.

"He was telling me to keep my head up and that it's normal to have bad weekends and just to keep believing. It was really nice," said the Mercedes star.

While Hamilton managed to fight his way back into the top 10 and claim seventh place on Sunday, Antonelli was unable to make much progress in the race and finished a lowly P16.

Antonelli struck by Mercedes performance woes

Big things were expected of Antonelli after being given the opportunity to replace seven-time champion Hamilton at Mercedes this season, but despite making a promising start to life in F1, he has suffered a dramatic drop-off in form.

The result in Spa means the rookie has now failed to secure a point in six of his last seven outings, with a stunning podium finish in Canada back in June the outlier.

Both Antonelli and team-mate George Russell's contracts will be up at the end of this season, and with Max Verstappen emerging as a potential option, the youngster is already under pressure to hold on to his seat.

He currently occupies seventh spot in the drivers' standings, one place behind Hamilton, and is almost 100 points behind Silver Arrows team-mate Russell, admitting in Belgium that his confidence was reaching new lows in the sport.

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