Lewis Hamilton will start from the second row on Sunday and warns that Ferrari is now capable of competing with Mercedes for the victory.
Read more Charles Leclerc frustrated in qualifying but confident for the race
Lewis Hamilton concluded the Chinese Grand Prix qualifying in third position, behind Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. The Briton, a seven-time world champion, had to deal with wind gusts that made his lap particularly tricky and caused several moments of oversteer. Despite these difficulties, Hamilton believes he has found the pace to stay in the mix against the Mercedes.
“It was a really difficult qualifying. With the wind today, putting together a clean lap was complicated. Charles [Leclerc] put in some excellent laps, and the Mercedes drivers did too. I’m really happy to be here with them and grateful for the work done.”
The Ferrari driver highlights that his team took advantage of the break between the sprint and qualifying to adjust the car: “The engineers did a fantastic job during the break. We managed to get a bit closer to the leaders, and it’s really positive.”
Objective: Shake up Mercedes
Hamilton knows that Ferrari has closed the gap with Mercedes, notably thanks to faster starts during Saturday’s sprint. He intends to take advantage of this development right from the start of the race to try and gain ground:
“It’s going to remain a challenge, but I’m sure we’ll be able to have some fun. We learned a lot during the sprint, and we’re going to try to close the gap with these guys [Mercedes] right from the start.”
Read more Lewis Hamilton explains what ruined his Shanghai sprint victory
The Briton is still waiting for his first podium with Ferrari, and Sunday’s race could be the opportunity to confirm the competitiveness of the SF-26 against Mercedes and young talents like Antonelli.
“We hope that tomorrow there will be less wind and that our goal will be to close the gap with them one way or another. It’s going to be interesting to see how we can push right from the start.”
A strategic duel ahead
With Antonelli and Russell on the front row, Hamilton knows that the battle from the start will be key. His place on the second row allows him to stay in the hunt for the victory, while preparing offensive maneuvers from the first corners. The SF-26 will have to manage the tires and conditions to hope to counter the momentum of the Mercedes and seize any opportunities created by traffic or potential incidents on the Shanghai track.
Hamilton concludes on a motivating note: “We’re going to have fun and implement everything we’ve learned so far. We want to play an active role in the fight for the victory.”
Read more George Russell surprised by Hamilton’s attack at the Shanghai sprint