Leclerc Says the Ferrari SF-25 has ‘Zero Performance’ Ahead of Qatar GP, Hamilton Apologizes to Fans
It’s another weekend where the Ferrari drivers find themselves fighting an uphill battle against their cars, as both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton struggle with handling the SF-25 ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix.
Hamilton was knocked out of qualifying in the first session for the second grand prix in a row, and also failed to advance out of Q1 for Qatar’s sprint race. In the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Hamilton became the first Ferrari driver to qualify in last place for a grand prix. Hamilton lost speed into the apex of turn one on his final lap in Q1, coming up on Pierre Gasly, and never recovered, with the Ferrari struggling in the high-speed corners of the Lusail Circuit, only outqualifying the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll and Alpine of Franco Colapinto.
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Ferrari made tweaks to Hamilton’s Ferrari after he was unable to move forward in the 19-lap sprint earlier on Saturday, but it wasn’t turned into a performance. When asked to share a message to his fans by F1TV, Hamilton found himself at a loss for words.
“I don’t really have a message right now,” Hamilton said dejectedly. “I’m sorry.”
Hamilton added that he was grateful for the support he’s felt all season.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the support I’ve had all year,” Hamilton said. “I wouldn’t make it without it.”
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Leclerc eked into Q2 and then into Q1 but struggled with handling through each session before finally losing it and falling into a high-speed spin on his first attempt at a Q3 lap.
He was able to drive off without damage and was gifted a few minutes to breathe by the red flag brought out by his former teammate, Carlos Sainz, who deposited a sticker on the racing surface. He was able to place a lap. His lap was only good enough for 10th with every driver still eligible for pole outpacing the Ferrari.
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“Incredibly difficult day, incredibly difficult weekend,” Leclerc added. “I don’t really know what to say. It’s been extremely difficult to drive this car, to keep it on track. I’m trying absolutely everything in order to extract anything I can from that car, but at the moment, it’s the only thing possible. It’s frustrating, the best thing I can do is try to reset for tomorrow and try to come back to the track motivated, and try to do something special.
“Am I optimistic for tomorrow? I am not,” Leclerc answered himself. “Which is quite rare. Normally, I’m a very optimistic person, but I have to say that this weekend, there is zero performance in this car.”
Leclerc and Hamilton will hope for safety cars to continue to bunch up the field in tomorrow’s 57-lap grand prix, as drivers are cornered into a two-stop thanks to lap-limits on the Perelli tire.
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