'I was an F1 steward - Lewis Hamilton was taking liberties at the Singapore GP'

Johnny Herbert, three-time Grand Prix winner and former FIA steward, believes that Lewis Hamilton was 'taking liberties' during the closing laps of the Singapore Grand Prix, and that he thoroughly deserved his five-second time penalty.

Hamilton was on course for a fifth-place finish at the Marina Bay Street Circuit after a soft-tyre strategy call from Ferrari gave him a significant pace advantage over Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc. However, with just over two laps remaining, he suffered a brake issue that forced him to coast home at reduced speed.

The Brit was left in the dust by Antonelli and Leclerc, dropping back by around a minute into the clutches of Fernando Alonso. Hamilton eventually crossed the line four-tenths of a second ahead of the Spaniard, but not before cutting a series of corners in an attempt to stay out of the wall.

Alonso, who took the chequered flag in eighth place, was livid with his former McLaren team-mate and launched into a spectacular radio rant. The stewards called Hamilton in for an investigation and hit him with a five-second time penalty that dropped him behind Alonso in the classification.

According to Herbert, the penalty was justified. "It was the right thing to do to give Lewis that penalty because there was a bit of cutting of certain corners, so he didn't have to brake," the former FIA steward told BettingLounge. "He got his just desserts.

"The stewards made the right call. Fernando was definitely making sure the stewards were aware of his anger. But I think it was quite clear at the end of the day that liberties were being taken for Lewis to get to the end of the race.

For the latest breaking stories and headlines, sign up to our Daily Express F1 newsletter, or join our WhatsApp community here.

"You can't take those liberties, you can't cheat to that degree. Very Fernando, getting on his high horse, shouting and screaming! We all expect that from Fernando, that competitiveness from that very first race when he came into Formula One all those years ago."

Hamilton's brake issue had significant ramifications for Ferrari's Constructors' Championship aspirations. The Scuderia are now 27 points behind Mercedes in second place after George Russell notched his and the Silver Arrows' second Grand Prix victory of the year in Singapore.

Adding further insult to injury for Ferrari was Antonelli's steady showing last weekend. After a worrying middle portion of the season, the Italian teenager has recorded back-to-back top-five finishes, increasing the urgency for Fred Vasseur's team to improve their sluggish form.