Lewis Hamilton qualified fifth for Ferrari in 2026 Italian Grand Prix qualifying at Monza after a difficult session in which the seven-time Formula 1 world champion came within just 0.001 seconds of being eliminated in Q2. Lewis Hamilton eventually finished only 0.007 seconds behind Charles Leclerc and a little over two tenths away from Pierre Gasly’s pole position.
Ferrari never appeared to be a genuine contender for pole position during the decisive stages of qualifying at Monza. The warning signs became particularly clear in Q2, when Lewis Hamilton narrowly survived elimination by a margin of just one thousandth of a second, underlining how much more difficult Saturday had become than Ferrari had expected.
Things did not go perfectly in Q3 either. Lewis Hamilton completed his first attempt entirely on his own, one of the least favourable situations possible at a circuit such as Monza, where the slipstream can provide an important advantage along the long straights.
Lewis Hamilton criticises Ferrari’s Q3 execution at Monza
“It was definitely a very, very difficult qualifying session,” Lewis Hamilton admitted to Sky UK. “The car felt really good in practice, so I didn’t change anything going into qualifying. At the start of Q1 I felt comfortable and it went well. Then we stopped and waited for a very long time in the pits at the beginning of Q2 and, for some reason, we no longer had the right pace. I’m not really sure whether it was because of the pressure or the tyre temperature. We need to look into it.”
The situation in Q3 was equally frustrating for Lewis Hamilton, particularly during his opening run when he was unable to benefit from another car ahead.
“The execution in Q3 was terrible. I found myself in the middle of nowhere. When you are behind another car, you arrive faster into different corners, you adapt your braking point and it is all about finding the rhythm. The second attempt wasn’t terrible, but with different references I wasn’t able to get the most out of it.”
Despite his disappointment with qualifying, Lewis Hamilton remained positive about the underlying performance of the SF-26. Ferrari had brought further development work to its home Grand Prix, with the team placing particular emphasis on its ADUO-2 Power Unit upgrade for Monza.
Lewis Hamilton praises Ferrari SF-26 despite Mercedes power advantage
Lewis Hamilton thanked the factory for the work carried out on Ferrari’s latest updates and praised the overall level of the car, while also pointing to the straight-line performance of the Mercedes-powered cars. Monza’s long full-throttle sections place an especially heavy emphasis on Power Unit efficiency and energy deployment, areas that have been central to the development of Ferrari’s SF-26 Power Unit.
“I think our car is really fantastic. Ahead of us we only have the Mercedes engines and for us to be so close we have done a good job. They continue to gain several tenths on the straight and that is just how it is. Hopefully at some of the next circuits that are not so power-dependent. The guys are giving it everything.”
Lewis Hamilton will therefore start behind Charles Leclerc after the two Ferrari drivers finished fourth and fifth respectively in qualifying. Although Ferrari missed out on the front row at its home Grand Prix, the tiny 0.007-second gap between its two drivers leaves the Scuderia with both cars closely matched heading into the race at Monza.
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