Lewis Hamilton called F1 officials “a complete joke” following his disastrous Brazilian Grand Prix, where he was forced to retire in a nation where he is an honorary citizen.

In an awful weekend for Ferrari, where Charles Leclerc also did not finish as a result of the collision that led to a 10-second penalty for Oscar Piastri, Hamilton dropped to 18th after contact with Carlos Sainz at Turn One on the opening lap and later that lap crashed into the back of Franco Colapinto on the main straight.

Hamilton’s front wing was badly damaged, and had to be replaced.

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Things did not get any easier once back on the track, however, with Hamilton struggling to control his beaten up car as the race progressed.

“Mate, I’m going to crash out here. I’ll keep trying. The car is crazy unstable,” he said on his team radio.

“It’s likely I’m going to end up in the barriers,” he added midway through the race.

“The rears. The rear is dropping off big time.”

Classy Piastri congratulates Norris | 00:37

To rub salt into the wounds, it was announced on lap 29 that Hamilton copped a five-second penalty for his earlier collision with Colapinto.

It was a decision that left the seven-time world champion furious.

“These guys are a joke. A complete joke,” he said of FIA stewards on the team radio.

“The car moved over on me so I clipped my wing.”

Shortly after, on lap 40, Hamilton brought his day to a close, retiring from the race.

“I mean, jeez, this is definitely a weekend to forget,” he told F1 TV post-race.

“It’s a shame because I love Brazil and also, you know, just everyone in the team, every single person in the team, they turn up every week and give it their absolute best and to come away with nothing, to not finish a race the second time in the year, it’s really devastating and I feel terrible for the team.

“I’m sorry for my part in qualifying, putting myself in that position. I just have to … We’ll get back up tomorrow and just give it another go.”

“Oh my god!” Norris on Piastri crash | 00:11

It was the latest “nightmare” weekend in what has been a challenging first year at Ferrari for Hamilton.

“It’s a nightmare,” Hamilton said of his struggles. “I’ve been living it now for a while and the flip between living the dream of driving for this amazing team and then the nightmare of the results that we’ve had.

“The ups and downs. It’s challenging, but tomorrow I’ll get back up. I’ll keep training and I’ll keep working with the team.

“I really wanted to get them good points this weekend, but I’ll come back as strong as I can in the next race and try to recover.

“We are really having to fight through those hardships at the moment, but I believe there is something up ahead in my life and in my destiny.

“Truly, I still believe in this team and what we can achieve. I just have to keep pushing and never give up.”

Piastri reacts after disastrous crash | 00:46

Hamilton has added an unwanted record to his many spectacular successes this season by going 21 races without a podium finish, an all-time low among Ferrari drivers, and on Sunday suffered more bad luck at the start of the Interlagos race.

“I don’t really know what happened at Turn One, but obviously it’s not great to be hit and after that the car was just gone,” Hamilton said.

“But that’s how it has been this season. It’s obviously a disaster, a stress and a disappointment for everyone in the team. but I’m trying to keep my head above water.

“I’m trying to remain positive. Charles did a great job in qualifying yesterday so there is some performance in our car and I agree that at this point I just have to believe that something will come out of all these hardships we’re going through.”