Lewis Hamilton has stated that his current difficulties with Ferrari are expected to be “painful” and could last for the remainder of the 2025 season. This follows what he described as a “horrible” performance at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
In Sunday`s race, Hamilton finished a solitary seventh, the same position he started from. It marked another weekend where his Ferrari teammate, Charles Leclerc, clearly demonstrated superior pace.
Since his win in the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint last month, Hamilton has consistently finished behind Leclerc in both qualifying and the race across three events: Japan, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia.
Notably in Jeddah, Hamilton finished over 30 seconds behind Leclerc, who secured Ferrari`s first podium of the season.
“Nothing positive to take, except for Charles finishing on the podium, which is great for the team,” Hamilton commented on his race result.
Describing his challenging drive, he added:
“It was horrible, not enjoyable at all. I was just sliding around. I didn`t have grip. First stint, massive understeer, car not turning and then massive deg. The second stint, slightly better balance but still just no pace. Pretty bad.”
When questioned about his downturn in form since the race in China, Hamilton appeared perplexed and admitted that he doesn`t “have any answers.”
He concluded grimly about the prospect of improvement:
“At the moment there`s no fix. So, this is how it`s going to be for the rest of the year. It`s going to be painful.”
Comparing Data with Leclerc
Addressing the performance gap relative to his teammate, Hamilton noted that despite sharing similar driving styles and converging on car setups ahead of the Saudi Arabian GP, Leclerc`s pace advantage persists. While Leclerc is highly regarded as a strong qualifier, he is currently also faster than Hamilton in race conditions, an area where Hamilton has historically excelled.
Hamilton observed about their telemetry:
“There`s plenty in the data, for sure. Honestly, it doesn`t look massively different in the data. I just go slower through the corners.”
He acknowledged differences in car configuration and credited his teammate`s performance:
“We do have slightly different set-ups. I have to look and see whether that set-up is the way the car likes to be. He and his side are definitely obviously doing a better job.”
Reflecting on his efforts during the race, Hamilton stated:
“In qualifying it`s me extracting performance. In the race, I tried everything, and the car just didn`t want to go quicker.”
Gilbert Pendleton 
Wesley Dunham