The Mercedes driver had looked on course to challenge Max Verstappen for victory at Zandvoort after a strong run through much of the race, but the events were turned on their head by late VSC and safety car periods.
For the latter, Red Bull had elected to sacrifice track position to switch Verstappen to the softs while Hamilton was kept out on used mediums to take the lead with Mercedes feeling it was worth the risk in gunning for the win.
