Lewis Hamilton admits he struggles to “couple” with the Ferrari F1 car as his qualifying predicament continued at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The seven-time world champion went out in the first and second quarters, then managed the seventh lap on the grid, with Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc in fourth.
Hamilton has been behind Leclerk in Jeddah over the past weekends, and was also outqualified by the driver he replaced by Williams’ Carlos Sainz, who was a driver at Ferrari, who had two consecutive weekends.
“As usual, my qualifications were challenging,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1.
“I’ve been nowhere throughout the weekend – on the 13th, I’m thinking about it in almost every session – so honestly, I’m grateful that I’ve reached Q3 and P7.
“It’s not an epic final rap, but I’ve made improvements throughout the weekend. I needed a better rap at the end, but like I said, I’m just grateful to be there. I still have plenty of time.”
Asked if he hopes that the race will at least get better, the 40-year-old Brit replied.
“But we won’t give up. When there’s a path, we keep pushing, keep trying, get amazing support, just keep working hard.”
Despite P4, Charles Leclerc isn’t happy
Leclerc took everything out of the Ferrari again on his way to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Mercedes’ George Russell’s fourth.
But Monegasque is far from willing to delight and laments Ferrari’s overall lack of grip and performance.
“I’m not satisfied. Overall I’m very disappointed,” explained Leclerc.
“When you do everything you can in the car, that’s ultimately a p4. It’s just annoyed and disappointing.
“We can change the limits from oversteer and understeer, but at the end of the day there isn’t enough grip to bring in the speed they (the rivals) are carrying.
“That’s a shame because we were expecting more from a truck like this. We’re just missing out.”