Hamilton Expects Long-Term Battle to Overcome Ferrari F1 Struggles
Ferrari's latest signing Lewis Hamilton faces ongoing struggles with his new car, showing no immediate signs of improvement after a challenging Saudi Arabian Grand Prix performance.
Despite a promising Sprint victory in China, Hamilton's recent grand prix results have been disappointing, finishing seventh, fifth, and seventh in the last three races. The British driver finished more than 30 seconds behind teammate Charles Leclerc in Jeddah.
Red racecar speeding on racetrack
Hamilton described his experience as "horrible," citing major issues with understeer, degradation, and overall grip. "I was just fighting the car every corner, and nothing I did would work," he explained.
Looking ahead to the Miami Grand Prix on May 4, Hamilton remains pessimistic about finding quick solutions. He acknowledges his teammate's advantage in understanding the car: "Charles has been driving this car for a long time, so he definitely knows it pretty well."
The seven-time world champion expects these challenges to persist throughout the season, stating, "At the moment there's no fix. This is how it's going to be for the rest of the year." Hamilton also criticized the current ground effect era of cars, introduced in 2022, describing them as "the worst."
Despite analyzing different setup options and data, Hamilton admits the issues extend beyond just car setup, particularly in qualifying where he struggles to extract maximum performance. The transition from Mercedes to Ferrari continues to prove challenging for the veteran driver.