Hamilton: We went the wrong way with the set-up

It has been five years since Hamilton was eliminated in Q1, that time he crashed, this time he simply had no answer in a Mercedes that is fast becoming their unlucky W13.

In fact, this is their biggest flop in almost a decade after eight years of predecessors that all but dominated the sport. This fall from race-winning competitiveness to midfield mediocrity has been steep and rapid.

A subdued, if not bewildered, Hamilton told TV reporters after his shorter than normal qualifying session: “Just struggled with the balance of the car, it’s not where we want to be."

The seven-time F1 world champion also ruled out any ill effects of the nearby missile attacks that almost caused the cancellation of the weekend in Jeddah: “We’re professional, we lock out whatever it needs. Just unfortunately we went the wrong way with the set-up."

Later in the team report, Hamilton reflected on a dramatic day, in which Haas driver Mick Schumacher crashed heavily during Q2: "I hope Mick is OK, that corner is 170mph and it's terrifying to see what's happened - that's the biggest crash we've seen at this track."

Schumacher was hospitalised without serious injuries, despite the ferocity of the impact, but his Haas team have decided to withdraw him from the race.

As for his own struggles, Hamilton said: "The rear end was snapping out and this isn't where we want to be. We went the wrong way with the set-up tonight and the car just wasn't underneath me for this session.

"It's strange because the car was feeling good in FP3 but in qualifying, it was difficult to drive all of a sudden and felt nervous.

"Everyone is working as hard as they can and trying to stay positive. I'll try my best and see what we can do," added Hamilton who won the Saudi Grand Prix race last year, the first time it was run.