Lewis Hamilton was visibly down after a disappointing qualifying performance at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The seven-time world champion was only able to manage ninth in his upgraded Ferrari, a disappointing six places behind his team-mate Charles Leclerc who finished third.
Despite Ferrari bringing a significant upgrade package for the Bahrain race weekend, Hamilton struggled to extract performance from his car, finishing well behind pole position winner Oscar Piastre.
Speaking to the media after his performance in Q3, the British driver was brief and self-critical.
“It was pretty simple. Yeah, there’s not much to say,” he said in frustration, taking the blame for his lackluster performance today on himself. “I’m just not doing a good enough job on my end, so I just have to keep improving it,” he admitted.
The final round of qualifying was complicated by a lap being deleted due to track restrictions, which didn’t do him any favors mentally. When asked if this affected his mindset in the final runs, he said,
“It didn’t help, but it wasn’t the worst possible scenario.”
His teammate Charles Leclerc qualified third, 0.334 seconds behind Piastri and just 0.166 behind George Russell. This contrast in performance was not overlooked by the former Mercedes driver.
“Yes, it’s good. The car is good enough, which is good.”
Ferrari’s upgrade package was the first of the season – a redesign of the floor for what they expect to be an improvement. The Italian team has been battling against the top three teams: Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull, but these upgrades are expected to open up an operational window to reach the top.
“The upgrades are definitely working,” Hamilton said after practice on Friday. Looking at tomorrow’s race, Hamilton hopes that he can secure a place in the “top five”, as he also confirmed that the aforementioned “deficit” has been resolved.
“I’m hoping for a top five,” Hamilton confirmed. “I’ll try to see if I can get into the top five, we’ll see.”
Perhaps most concerning is his uncertainty regarding his future performance.
