F1 Belgian Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton to start from pit lane

Lewis Hamilton will start Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix from the pit lane with a new power unit after qualifying only 16th, Ferrari said.

The seven-time Formula One world champion won at Spa with Mercedes last year but has had a nightmare so far, qualifying 18th in Friday’s sprint qualifying and finishing 15th in Saturday’s 100km race.

Hamilton has won five times in Belgium and has been on the podium in all but two of the races he has finished at the longest circuit on the calendar.

The Briton, who moved to the Italian team in January and has yet to stand on the podium for it, apologised to Ferrari on Saturday for a performance he said was unacceptable.

Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli will also start from the pit lane after those teams also changed engine components.

Sunday’s race is set to be wet. The Formula Two feature race started behind the safety car, while the Formula Three race was cancelled entirely due to the conditions.