Lewis Hamilton: “It could have been much worse, I feel optimistic for the race”

Lewis Hamilton emerged as the less disappointed side of the Ferrari garage after qualifying fifth for the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort. The seven-time Formula 1 world champion improved on his position from Friday’s Sprint Qualifying and narrowly avoided a much worse starting spot, before expressing confidence that Ferrari’s race pace should be stronger on Sunday.

The result came with considerable late drama. Lewis Hamilton was in danger of slipping as far back as the fifth row when rain arrived during the closing moments of qualifying, potentially threatening his final attempt. He ultimately completed the lap he needed and secured fifth, although the difficulty of overtaking at Zandvoort means Ferrari still faces a challenging task from the third row.

Lewis Hamilton happier with Ferrari balance after major set-up changes

Lewis Hamilton began qualifying by adapting to an SF-26 that had undergone significant set-up changes following the problems he experienced on Friday afternoon. The revised balance suited him considerably better, but it also meant he effectively had to relearn the car during the session itself.

Reflecting on the tense closing stages, Lewis Hamilton admitted he feared his qualifying result was slipping away before producing his best lap.

“I’m grateful I managed to do it, because I think I was eighth or something like that and my heart was sinking at that moment. It was a very different session with a very different car. I had no confidence in the balance and we made all these changes going into qualifying, so I was learning a new car and a new balance, which I’m much happier with. Trying to progress with it while learning it in about six laps was a challenge.”

The improvement represented a significant change from Lewis Hamilton’s earlier difficulties during the weekend. Ferrari’s broader Zandvoort qualifying problems nevertheless remained visible, particularly when it came to extracting maximum performance from the tyres.

Lewis Hamilton identifies Ferrari tyre warm-up weakness

While Charles Leclerc pointed towards changes made to the Power Unit during qualifying as one of the reasons behind his own disappointing result, Lewis Hamilton focused primarily on Ferrari’s tyre management.

“In these conditions, there was something we were missing with the tyres, but the car was definitely better for me today,” Lewis Hamilton explained. “Then tyre preparation and everything around that is where the others did a better job: some of them were able to do it in just one lap, whereas we were missing something. Why? Because the tyres weren’t warming up enough. That’s something we need to look at.”

The tyre preparation issue became one of Ferrari’s key limitations during the session. Lewis Hamilton’s comments reinforce the concern that the SF-26 required more work to bring the tyres into their optimal operating window than some of its main rivals, an issue examined further in the analysis of Ferrari’s tyre warm-up difficulties at Zandvoort.

Lewis Hamilton optimistic about Ferrari Dutch GP race pace

Despite starting fifth and acknowledging how difficult overtaking can be around Zandvoort, Lewis Hamilton was notably more confident when assessing Ferrari’s prospects over the full Grand Prix distance.

The situation is complicated by the Mercedes-powered cars ahead, with Lewis Hamilton acknowledging that Ferrari is also dealing with a small power deficit.

“All the Mercedes-powered cars are ahead of us and we know we have a small disadvantage in terms of power,” the Ferrari driver admitted. “I think tomorrow our race pace should be better and, as I said, I think the car is better suited to the race.”

Lewis Hamilton also drew encouragement from Charles Leclerc’s performance in the Sprint, when his Ferrari teammate demonstrated competitive race pace.

“Charles had good race pace this morning, so I feel optimistic. I think the car is in a better place, so hopefully with the right strategy and the right execution we can challenge the guys ahead of us.”

Ferrari’s Sprint performance had already provided evidence that the SF-26 could be more competitive over a race distance than its qualifying positions suggested. That will now become particularly important at a circuit where track position carries significant value and overtaking opportunities are limited.

Ferrari needs execution to turn optimism into a Dutch GP recovery

For Lewis Hamilton, fifth place therefore represented something of a recovery after a difficult beginning to the Zandvoort weekend. The qualifying result could have been considerably worse, while the extensive set-up changes left him much happier with the fundamental balance of the SF-26.

Ferrari still has two clear obstacles to address: its difficulty generating sufficient tyre temperature in qualifying conditions and the power disadvantage Lewis Hamilton highlighted against the Mercedes-powered cars. Yet his confidence in the car’s race behaviour provides a more encouraging outlook heading into the Grand Prix.

The challenge will be converting that improved feeling into positions on a circuit where passing is notoriously difficult. Strategy, execution and race pace will therefore be crucial if Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari are to challenge the cars starting ahead at Zandvoort.