McLaren will launch an investigation into the penultimate-lap drama that robbed Lewis Hamilton of 18 valuable points in Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix.

Hamilton was poised for second place at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya after driving a faultless race until a suspected left-front tyre rim failure plunged the 25-year-old into a tyre wall.

It means Hamilton now heads into Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix 21 points adrift of team-mate Jenson Button when he might otherwise have been only a point down.

"For Lewis, it was just one of those days," said team principal Martin Whitmarsh. "He drove brilliantly, an impressively disciplined yet excitingly combative performance.

"He posted the fastest lap of the race on his way to what would have been a richly-deserved second place had he not been forced to retire within spitting distance of the chequered flag.

"The parts will now be meticulously analysed back at the McLaren Technology Centre. Until we've done that we won't be able to make any definitive statements about what we think it was that caused the problem."

Hamilton said: "This is my third or fourth tyre blow out in my career. More than most people have in their whole lifetime.

"There was no warning, the car felt great, so it was a surprise and a very disappointing end to the race.

"Up until that point it was pretty positive. I was just cruising to the finish line and heading for some great points.

"It was looking like a great job for us, but then it's never over until it's over."