SINGAPORE, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Lewis Hamilton apologised to Ferrari after a failure to enter the pits during a crucial Virtual Safety Car period prevented the Italian team from placing two cars on the podium at Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix.
While there was no catching Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who claimed his first win in Singapore from pole, the two Ferraris were second and third when the VSC was triggered by Lance Stroll's retirement.
Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur revealed both drivers were called in to change tyres, but Hamilton missed the pit entry while Charles Leclerc successfully stopped and eventually claimed second place after overtaking his teammate.
"We all started the race completely blind with the tyres and I think today the soft was much better than the medium. It's why Lewis struggled at the beginning," Vasseur told Sky Sports.
"We kept the door open for the two options depending on VSC and that was the case. We called them both to pit. It would have been P2-P3 because we were P2-P3 on track and he missed the pit entry."
Hamilton's tyre troubles mounted as he struggled to match the race pace, eventually being overtaken by Leclerc, Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli as well as McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to finish a disappointing sixth.
'I MISSED THE ENTRY'
The Briton said he had learned a "painful lesson" but took full responsibility for the call to stay out.
"Under the VSC, the team called me in but I missed the entry. After that, I decided to stay out and try to hold track position to the end," Hamilton said.
"But in the closing laps, I was struggling massively with tyre degradation and lost three places, finishing P6, which doesn't reflect the pace we had in the car today.
"Not every call will work out and I can accept getting it wrong, but I'm sorry for the team for the points we lost today."
The dejected seven-times world champion also apologised over the team radio as he brought his car back to the pits after the race.
"Sorry boys, I let you down today with that strategy. My call and I lost us valuable points," Hamilton said.
"I'll try and make up for it in the next one. Great job with the pit stop though."
The missed opportunity was particularly painful given Ferrari's promising pace in Singapore, with Hamilton and Leclerc finishing second and third behind Verstappen in Saturday's sprint.
"Honestly, it's a bit of a shame because he's losing a podium as well," Vasseur said, adding that there was no miscommunication.
"He was crystal clear on the radio. But now let's be focused on Austin. The performance this weekend was okay. We have to be focused on the future."
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Singapore;Editing by Christian Radnedge and Toby Davis)
