F1 2025: Lewis Hamilton explains shock Ferrari decline at Chinese Grand Prix

Chinese Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton explains shock Ferrari decline at Chinese Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton experienced a whirlwind weekend in Shanghai

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Sunday 23 March 2025 19:58

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Seven-time Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton has provided an explanation over his dramatic shift in performance during the Chinese Grand Prix weekend.

The British legend achieved his first pole position with Ferrari on Friday after being quickest in the sprint qualifying, a result which he then smoothly converted to his maiden race win in red.

Hamilton's luck quickly turned around however and by the time grand prix qualifying came around on Saturday afternoon, the 40-year-old was outside of the top 10 during Q1.

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The Ferrari star pulled back a slightly more positive result from Q2 and Q3 meaning he lined up in P5 for lights out at the Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday.

Hamilton addresses Chinese GP setback

Hamilton failed to improve on the P5 start on Sunday and even swapped places with team-mate Charles Leclerc during the race due to his slower form.

The Ferrari driver duo finished the grand prix with Leclerc in P5 and Hamilton just behind him, but after a double disqualification for the Scuderia, neither driver will earn any points from the main event regardless.

Fortunately for Hamilton and his new team, the stunning Saturday sprint win remains intact, but the speedy decline in performance is certainly a concern, having gone from boasting a six-second sprint lead to suddenly struggling as the fifth fastest in qualifying.

Speaking to Sky F1 after the race but before his confirmed disqualification, Hamilton explained why he felt his results had shifted so rapidly.

"I’m glad that we tried something. I struggled with performance," he said.

"Ultimately basically we had a pretty decent car in the Sprint and then we made some changes because we were trying to move forwards and improve the car and we made it quite a bit worse, basically, going into qualifying.

"Then it was even worse in the race. So unfortunate but very, very hard to keep up with the guys ahead. But lots learnt.

"The pit stop is too long here, it’s a lot of seconds to catch up, and they were still going fast at the end. Max was doing something similar to me and I had much fresher tyres, so it wasn’t great."

F1 HEADLINES: Lewis Hamilton hits out as Ferrari star DISQUALIFIED from Chinese Grand Prix