Lewis Hamilton breaks silence on being just a couple of tenths off Charles Leclerc in his first qualifying session for Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton has taken his proximity to Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc after qualifying as a positive as he begins life at the Italian team. The British driver has switched teams this season, and whenever such a change is made, there's an acclimatization process that one has to go through.

While Hamilton has never had a Ferrari engine under him in his entire F1 career, Leclerc is in his seventh year with the team. It's acceptable to see Hamilton take some time to get used to the car under him. The 7x world champion, however, did have a decent run in his first-ever qualifying.

While Charles Leclerc was P7 by the time the checkered flag fell, Lewis Hamilton was right behind him in P8, only two tenths behind.

After a strong Friday where Ferrari appeared to be more in sync with the track and Leclerc looking very comfortable, the overall performance is certainly a step down for the squad. For Hamilton, however, on a personal level, this is a positive step, as it shows that his adaptation process is right on track. Talking to Sky Sports, Hamilton looked at the deficit and said:

"Charles has been in this team for seven years, he knows this car in and out - not necessarily the new one, but the general characteristics of our cars - and all the tools and everything. I'm still learning those so to be that close in my first qualifying session I'll definitely take it. We'll just get our heads down and start working trying to find out why we're not on pace with the front-runners."

He added:

"Tomorrow's going to be a challenge, I've never driven this car in the rain. I don't even know the rain settings so I've got to go and study that tonight and it'll be a learning experience again tomorrow."

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Lewis Hamilton surprised by gap to McLaren

While the gap between the two Ferrari drivers was around a couple of tenths, Lewis Hamilton's gap to pole position was a whopping eight tenths. After the kind of run Charles Leclerc had in FP2, where the car was fastest in the qualifying simulation, this does come as a surprise. Hamilton also acknowledged the gap to McLaren.

"I generally feel good. I had a really good time out there today. Everything has been a first this weekend. My first practice sessions with Ferrari, my first qualifying. It's been a lot of work to really adapt, this car is so much different here to what I've experienced in the past. But it's been interesting. I definitely didn't know that we'd be eight tenths off today, but there is a lot to dissect for sure," Lewis Hamilton said.

For a first weekend in a new team, Hamilton's laptime and performance have been very impressive. The 7x F1 champion would be looking to build on it and make the best use of rain to maybe get one over his teammate Leclerc.