Lewis Hamilton struggles with Ferrari car balance: admits second row unlikely | F1 Hungarian GP. Lewis Hamilton admits to major car balance problems on Friday in Hungary.

It was a Friday to forget for seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton, who openly admitted to a challenging start to the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. While the Hungaroring has historically been one of the strongest circuits for the British driver, this time he found himself unable to extract the expected performance from his Ferrari SF-25 car. In contrast, Charles Leclerc, who has often referred to Budapest as one of his least favorable tracks on the calendar, finished the day in third place. Hamilton ended up in sixth, around three-tenths of a second behind his former Mercedes team-mate George Russell and noticeably off the pace of Charles Leclerc.

There were few smiles inside the Ferrari garage, particularly on Hamilton’s side. Despite the Hungaroring being a venue where Hamilton has traditionally delivered standout performances — with multiple wins and pole positions over the years — the Friday session painted a very different picture in 2025. The balance issues that have haunted him throughout the season reappeared in full force.

Speaking to Sky Sports UK after the session, Lewis Hamilton was candid about the difficulties he experienced during both free practice sessions on Friday: “It was not a good day for me. I had major, major issues with the balance of the car. It was something completely different from what I’ve felt here in previous years.” This statement echoed a recurring theme in Hamilton’s 2025 campaign, where he has frequently reported inconsistent car behavior from one race to the next.

Lewis Hamilton explained that the Ferrari team had attempted two different setups across the two sessions, hoping to correct the issues seen in Free Practice 1. The car was significantly changed for Free Practice 2, but the outcome was not what they had hoped for. “We tried two different approaches. We tried to fix the balance issues we had in FP1 by changing the setup for FP2. But I ended up with a balance that was really inconsistent from one corner to the next. It’s not a case of understeer or oversteer — it’s just that the car is nowhere near where it should be in terms of stability and balance.”

The British driver went on to suggest that the issue could be related to tyre temperature or window management — a frequent challenge at the twisty and technical Hungaroring — and that the team would work overnight to understand the root cause and identify a solution. “Maybe it’s something related to the tyre temperatures. We’ll try to get to the bottom of it by tomorrow,” he added.

Lewis Hamilton concluded his Friday analysis with a frank assessment of the situation: “Charles Leclerc was fast today and seems happy with the car. I’m quite far off, and I honestly doubt I’ll be able to fight for a spot on the second row.”

With qualifying looming, the Maranello squad faces a critical few hours to study the data and make changes that could put Lewis Hamilton back in contention — at least for a spot behind the dominant McLaren cars. But for now, the signs point to another uphill battle for the Italian side and its most decorated driver.