Hamilton misses out on Madring pole, laments that Ferrari “can’t match” Mercedes' engine ahead

Credit: Formula One

Lewis Hamilton’s blazing first lap in Q3 of Saturday’s Qualifying got him to provisional pole on the brand-new Madring circuit, but ultimately later efforts from others dropped him all the way down to fourth.

His verdict? That the Mercedes power unit used by the other teams is giving them an edge that Ferrari is struggling to catch up to.

“Qualifying was pretty decent,” said Hamilton following the session. 

“It takes everything for us to be able to compete with the two powerhouse motors [Mercedes and McLaren] ahead. They just seem to be able to turn either the engine up or something when we get to qualifying, which we can’t match.”

“We’ve got to work harder,” he concluded. 

The cars ahead are the McLaren of Lando Norris, who took a surprise pole position, and Kimi Antonelli, who qualified second and has been a powerhouse all season. Both drivers are using the Mercedes power unit, which seems to be exhibiting stronger one-lap pace and race pace than the Ferrari engine. 

Earlier in the day, Hamilton fell victim to the new circuit's tenacity, crashing his Ferrari into the barriers and missing crucial time during Free Practice 3. As a brand-new circuit, it is imperative that the drivers get as much time in the car as they can, so the crash certainly rattled Hamilton’s side of the garage. 

When asked about the crash, Hamilton dismissed it as playing a part in what Ferrari may see as a disappointing Qualifying session.

“Nothing really to say about P3,” he said. “It’s nothing.”

Credit: Luca Martini / WHYOUT Media

Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc is set to start right behind Hamilton in fifth place for tomorrow's Grand Prix. The Monégasque believes that his final lap of Qualifying was simply overdriven. 

"I think the lap was pretty good in Q3; it's a tricky Qualifying where you've got to go fully committed into Q3, and I did that," he said. 

"But I felt like I maybe went over the limit a little in some corners and lost a little bit on top of maybe losing down the straights a bit because of running the older spec [engine]. 

"But at the end, that's on me. I think we did a good job today and we maximised our potential."