Lewis Hamilton makes alarming admission at Qatar GP that Ferrari hope won't continue

Lewis Hamilton has 2 much races near with Mercedes earlier helium moves to Ferrari for the 2025 play - and the 39-year-old is not feeling bully astir his prospects

A dejected Lewis Hamilton admitted helium is “definitely not accelerated anymore” aft different disappointing show successful qualifying.

Hamilton could lone suffice seventh for the sprint contention successful Qatar and was 0.399 seconds slower than George Russell. His Mercedes team-mate volition statesman 2nd connected Saturday down McLaren’s Lando Norris.

The 39-year-old has been consistently out-performed by Russell this play and suffered different setback successful the penultimate play of the 2024 campaign. Hamilton volition articulation up with Ferrari for adjacent play and his comments successful Qatar whitethorn good rise questions astatine the team.

"It was the aforesaid arsenic each different qualifying, not that great," Hamilton stated. “I'm conscionable slow. Same each weekend. The car felt comparatively decent. No issues. Not truly overmuch much to say."

When asked if the problems mightiness not beryllium with him, but with the car, Hamilton replied: "Who knows? I'm decidedly not accelerated anymore."

The downbeat seasoned operator struggled to find immoderate positives from the performance. "The agelong tally didn't consciousness excessively bad," added Hamilton. "But, erstwhile you're backmost wherever I am, it makes it astir intolerable to vie for wins. But that's the Sprint. I volition bash what I tin [on Saturday]."

Asked whether determination were immoderate positives, Hamilton concluded: "Not particularly. The affirmative is the car is accelerated and George should beryllium capable to sprout for rod tomorrow."

Hamilton is an all-time large of the sport, having won 7 championships. He holds the all-time grounds for poles, connected 104 – good wide of Ferrari fable Michael Schumacher ’s 68 – but has struggled for signifier successful caller years.

The Brit sits seventh successful the standings with 2 races near successful the play and his grounds compared to Russell this twelvemonth is origin for interest for Ferrari. The younger antheral holds a 22-6 head-to-head qualifying vantage crossed the sport's 2 formats this year.

Ferrari brag Frederic Vasseur has asked Mercedes to merchandise Hamilton early, truthful that helium tin trial thrust his caller car, but the petition has not been granted. "I cognize Fred wanted it to happen,” Hamilton said. “For me, I was successful 2 minds. Driving the reddish car for the archetypal clip successful Abu Dhabi does not excite me. In a cleanable world, you get to thrust it, not beryllium seen, and bash the archetypal rollout adjacent year.

"When I did rise it, evidently with Toto [Wolff, Mercedes squad principal], they had each these plans that I person got to spell and spot immoderate of the sponsors and accidental their farewells.

"So I bash not deliberation it was ever going to really beryllium allowed, adjacent if I had asked to person done it, due to the fact that I americium contracted to the squad until December 31st and that is wholly fine. But it does not fuss me, again, due to the fact that I was not going to bash the test.

"It is not what I wanted to do. I told Fred that it is not what I wanted to do. Am I missing retired connected something? For sure. It decidedly delays the process and makes the commencement of the twelvemonth harder, but we volition bash our champion to recover."