Lewis Hamilton once again showed his disappointment with Ferrari after the Sprint of the Qatar GP, as Pierre Gasly mocked the SF-25 and the seven-time world champion admitted he would rather be in Hawaii than behind the wheel of the Italian car.
Frustration for Ferrari drivers
The team radios from both Ferrari drivers were blunt after the Sprint. Charles Leclerc feared he would “destroy the car against the wall” on the first lap, citing a problem with his SF-25. Lewis Hamilton’s car was similarly undrivable, struggling with both oversteer and understeer. The Italian team is preparing to make a complete setup change for both cars.
Lewis Hamilton’s ironic comment, then serious reflection
“I’d rather be in Hawaii, surfing.” That was Lewis Hamilton’s first comment to Sky Sport F1 Italia, using humor to lighten an almost unbearable situation. Ahead of qualifying, Ferrari is set to make a full setup change on both cars, as reported by AutoRacer.it. Later, Lewis Hamilton spoke seriously about how much he cares about performing for Ferrari and how painful these results are.
“Yesterday at 6 a.m. I was still awake, unable to sleep because I was trying to find solutions to give my engineers to improve the car. I feel a lot of pain for them because they deserve better. Even while answering questions, I’m thinking about what I can do better to help the team. I can assure you that commitment is not lacking and we won’t give up. Despite all the difficulties, I still have a lot of positive energy and we’ll keep pushing.”
The SF-25 struggles tremendously in the long corners of the Qatar circuit, and there seems to be no immediate solution. “Last night they found some things in the simulator, so we implemented those changes. And yes, the car was really going in the wrong direction and was very, very difficult for some reason, clearly for both cars. But we don’t have stability. So, when I say this, I mean the rear isn’t planted well, so it slides, snaps a lot. Then there’s bouncing. So, when entering corners, like turn 10, the car starts to jump. We have a lot of understeer mid-corner. Then you apply the steering, and it snaps, and you try to recover it. There’s a difference between low, medium, and high speed, and it’s an incredible struggle,” Lewis Hamilton told Sky Sports F1 UK.
Pierre Gasly joins the criticism
Finally, another driver, observing the SF-25 on track, made a very clear comment: “Pierre Gasly came to me and said: ‘The Ferrari looks terrible.’”
With qualifying just moments away, Ferrari are planning another major set-up reset on both cars during the brief parc fermé break. Whether that will be enough to drag the SF-25 out of its Qatar misery remains to be seen – but on today’s evidence, Hawaii suddenly sounds very appealing to everyone in red.
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