Lewis Hamilton’s having a nightmare start with Ferrari and he’s not hiding how tough it’s been. After scraping into Q3 in Jeddah, the seven-time champ admitted he’s been “nowhere all weekend” – finishing 13th in most sessions before landing P7. Not exactly the dream debut season he imagined.
Ferrari’s struggles were clear from the get-go. While Charles Leclerc managed to pull off some decent laps, Hamilton just couldn’t find his rhythm. Both drivers had to burn extra soft tyres just to survive Q1 and even then, it was touch-and-go. Leclerc had enough pace to coast through, but Hamilton needed every bit of grip to make the cut.
Things didn’t get easier in Q2. Another set of fresh softs were sacrificed just to reach the top 10. Then, disaster struck when Lando Norris binned it, bringing out the red flag. With only one shot left, Leclerc nailed a 1’27“670 for P4, while Hamilton could only manage 1’28”201 – good enough for seventh, but miles off where he wants to be.
“It was challenging, as always, qualifying for me” Hamilton admitted. “I'd been nowhere all weekend - 13th I think in almost every session - so, honestly, I feel grateful to have got to Q3 and P7.”
He’s trying to stay positive, but the frustration’s obvious. “Trying to bond with this car on a single lap is something that I am finding very difficult at the moment” he said. “But we don't give up. When there's a will there's a way.”
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen showed why he’s still the king of qualifying, snatching pole by a hair over Oscar Piastri. George Russell kept up his strong form in P3, with Leclerc just behind. But Hamilton? Stuck in seventh, behind even Alex Albon’s Williams. Ouch.
Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur knows they’ve got issues. “We’ve been paying three-tenths in the first sector since the beginning ” he said. “Lewis was almost 9 tenths behind the pole... he’s struggling a bit on this track.”
The real kicker? Oliver Bearman, last year’s stand-in rookie, was closer to Leclerc in his debut than Hamilton is now. That’s gotta sting.
Can Hamilton turn it around in the race? Maybe. But right now, Ferrari’s looking like the fourth-best team on the grid. And for a legend like Lewis, that’s a bitter pill to swallow.
