Lewis Hamilton suffered a nightmare start to the United States Grand Prix, spinning out of the race into the gravel on the third lap, bringing out an early safety car.

The seven-time world champion started way back in the pack after a dismal qualifying session and got off to a great initial start, climbing up to 12th on the opening lap after capitalising on contact between Alex Albon and Esteban Ocon ahead.

Unfortunately for Hamilton, that success didn’t last long. On lap three, the legendary Brit lost the rear on corner entry at Turn 19, spinning into the gravel trap and beaching his W15.

Hamilton put his foot to the floor in an attempt to dislodge his car but this was to no avail. On the radio, he issued a simple apology to his team: “Sorry, guys.”

This was the crescendo of a miserable weekend in Austin for the seven-time world champion. He was dumped out in Q1 in qualifying after limping home to a sixth-placed finish in Saturday’s sprint.

Speaking after a Saturday to forget, Hamilton said: “In the sprint, we had some sort of failure from the formation lap on the front suspension. I had that throughout the sprint race. That made the balance really difficult.

“We changed a couple of things which pushed us in the direction in what we would have done yesterday. The car was a nightmare in qualifying. I should probably start in the pit lane, otherwise I won’t be going anywhere from where I am.”

Curiously, Hamilton’s spin in the Grand Prix came at the same corner as team-mate George Russell. The 26-year-old hit the barrier on his final lap in Q3 on Saturday, giving the Mercedes engineers a major rebuild job.

Unfortunately for him, Russell was forced to give up his P6 grid slot as a result of the crash. The repairs made breached Parc Ferme rules, resigning him to a pit lane start on Sunday.