Lewis Hamilton`s Saturday at the Miami Grand Prix encapsulated the challenging start to his time with Ferrari, as the joy of Sprint success was swiftly followed by the disappointment of an early exit in qualifying.
Since his significant transfer to the Italian team after 12 years at Mercedes, Hamilton appeared to ignite his Ferrari journey by securing pole position and winning the Sprint race during the season`s second event in China at the end of March.
However, his victory was short-lived. The very next day, he was disqualified from the full-length race in Shanghai due to a technical regulation breach on his car. In the subsequent three race weekends, his best qualifying performance was only seventh place, and his highest race finish was fifth, consistently trailing team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Earlier on Saturday in Miami, the Sprint format once again provided a brief respite for the seven-time world champion. A quick decision to switch from intermediate to slick tyres on the drying track surface enabled him to climb from a vulnerable sixth position to finish third, behind the McLaren cars.
Although this result contributed only six points to his championship standing, keeping him in seventh place, Hamilton was visibly pleased with the rare positive moment.
“Oh man, I`m so happy with that,” Hamilton told the spectators immediately after the Sprint. “You know, it`s been a tough year so far.”
Hamilton`s Tyre Strategy Prompted by Severe Difficulty
While Hamilton was happy with the outcome, he seemed aware that the result was largely the product of a timely strategic gamble rather than strong inherent pace.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1, he stated: “It was my decision [to pit]. But it stemmed from the fact that I was struggling so much on the intermediates.”
“I was losing pace and couldn`t keep up with the cars ahead. The tyres had suffered from graining front and rear, and I felt like a passenger at that point.”
“I could see the dry line forming, and I thought `we have to do something or I`m just going to lose more positions`.”
“I wish I had done it one lap sooner, but I`m glad I made the call. The car felt great afterwards, and moving from seventh to third is a good result.”
Hamilton lacked a direct comparison to his team-mate Leclerc in the Sprint, as Leclerc retired on his way to the grid after crashing due to unexpectedly heavy rain. The chaotic nature of the Sprint and Leclerc`s absence made it challenging to assess Ferrari`s prospects for the main Grand Prix qualifying session.
A Return to Reality in Qualifying
While Hamilton hadn`t been overly optimistic after his Sprint performance, the qualifying session that followed proved to be perhaps as difficult as anticipated.
The 40-year-old driver had to fight hard to escape Q1, using an extra set of fresh soft tyres in the final seconds after a significant lock-up compromised his first attempt. This late effort narrowly lifted him out of the drop zone.
Following the struggles in Q1, it was less surprising when a poor second run in Q2, including another lock-up at the same corner (Turn 17), led to his elimination. He ended up starting the main race from a humbling 12th position on the grid.
Hamilton attempted to put on a brave face but admitted to Sky Sports F1 that Ferrari is grappling to understand their issues as they continue to fall significantly short of their pre-season expectations of challenging for the championship title.
“We will keep pushing. We are only six races into the season, but we are struggling considerably,” Hamilton commented.
“We are trying our utmost to avoid major set-up changes, but despite our efforts, the car is so inconsistent every time we go out.”
“We are facing problems with the brakes, issues with this instability that is causing us trouble, and overall, we are simply not fast enough. Just getting into Q3 is a challenge for us.”
“Once you are starting from the back foot, it`s difficult to recover points. Tomorrow will be a demanding race, but we will try again. It`s the same situation for me, I`m accustomed to it, but I will keep trying.”
“And I will be back at the factory next week and will continue to work.”
Leclerc`s Misery Deepens Ferrari`s Concerns
In the three previous rounds, there were signs that Leclerc was beginning to get a better handle on the SF-25, supporting consecutive fourth-place finishes in Japan and Bahrain with the team`s first Grand Prix podium of the season in Saudi Arabia.
However, the driver from Monaco seemed despondent about the car`s performance on Friday, and after qualifying eighth, he confirmed to Sky Sports F1 on Saturday that he believed it was performing worse than at any other point in the season.
“There was something peculiar in qualifying, something felt off. For some reason, I was completely outside the operating window of the car,” Leclerc stated.
“I began Q1, and we had to modify the car significantly to get closer to where I wanted it for Q3, which is highly unusual. But it never felt right, and the car`s performance was very poor.”
“The feeling isn`t good. But that`s how it is. It`s just frustrating because when you give your maximum effort and the best result is P8, it hurts, especially with a Ferrari, and having two Williams cars ahead of us. I didn`t make any mistakes… we simply aren`t fast enough.”
When asked if this was his most challenging experience of the season, Leclerc responded: “Yes. It`s also a circuit that differs from others. There are many slow-speed corners, and currently, we are paying the price in those specific sections.”
Ferrari`s primary hope for success in Sunday`s race appeared to be the possibility of rain creating further unpredictable conditions, but even that might not be enough to salvage their performance.
It seems highly likely that the team will arrive at their first of two home races this season in Imola in two weeks` time under significant pressure to reverse a disappointing beginning to the 2025 campaign.
Sunday Schedule Snippet
- F1 Academy Race 2
- Grand Prix Sunday: Miami GP build-up
- THE MIAMI GRAND PRIX
- Chequered Flag: Miami GP reaction
- Ted`s Notebook
Marcus Prine