Lewis Hamilton on Saturday ruled himself out of contention for victory in Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix and blamed his 'disastrous' showing in qualifying on choosing the wrong rear wing for his McLaren car.
Hamilton qualified eighth and said his performance was 'damage limitation' after seeing McLaren team-mate and fellow Briton Jenson Button grab his first pole position for the team using the team's new rear wing, rejected by Hamilton.
Hamilton won the previous race, before the European summer break, but said a repeat of that victory in Hungary was now unlikely, if not impossible.
He said: "It was a disaster for me, but we are still in the top 10 so it is damage limitation for me. It was literally all down to the rear wing.
"I was told the difference in wings was not so great, so it is definitely a surprise. I was told that in qualifying my wing would be quicker, but for some reason it wasn't.
"It would be great to be up there fighting for a one-two tomorrow, but with the wing I have that is not going to happen. The quick cars will be quick in the race tomorrow.
"Jenson's wing is working perfectly for him. It's great for him and I hope he gets maximum points tomorrow."
He added that he had squeezed all he could from his car during the session.
"Nothing happened on my lap, I got absolutely everything out of the car on all of the laps that I had generally," he said.
"The set-up might not be perfect, but I can't make up the time that I lose on the straights."
