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Lewis Hamilton has revealed that Ferrari have found a problem with his car, which cost him 0.1 seconds per lap in the first three races of the 2025 season. The driver has also claimed that the team know what the issue is but are unaware as to why it exists and how to fix it.
Lewis Hamilton had an underwhelming Japanese Grand Prix with his new team this weekend, as the 7x world champion's fate was half-sealed after a poor qualifying run, which saw him starting the race in P8. During a race of hardly any overtakes at all, Hamilton only managed to get passed Isack Hadjar and eventually finished P7.
Speaking to the media after the race, the 40-year-old claimed that there has been an issue on his car which has meant that he has lost over a tenth a lap, ever since the first race of the season in Australia.
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An X account posted a clip of Hamilton making this claim following the race at Suzuka on Sunday.
"We found something on the car that has been underperforming for the last three races, so I'm really hoping when that's fixed, [to see] how we start getting better results. But yeah I'm losing just over a tenth a lap with this issue we have." said Hamilton.
"I think it's just that, they are aware of it, but they don't know why. So, as I said, when the newer component comes, hopefully, it'll be gone and it'll be the same across cars. Considering that, I'm happy with the race pace I did have." he added.
Hamilton's claims suggest that his teammate Charles Leclerc may not be suffering from the same issue that he is. The Monegasque qualified and subsequently also finished in P4 during the Japanese GP.
The Briton also explained that if the issue is not fixed in the upcoming races, his qualifying performances would become even more important, which he admitted have not been great from his end.
Lewis Hamilton claims he showed 'maximum' pace with his Ferrari on Sunday
Lewis Hamilton has claimed that he was driving his Ferrari at the maximum during Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, and shared that P7 was the best possible result for him amid the issues with the car. The Briton also claimed that he would have been overtaken by the Mercedes cars even if he had qualified further forward.
Continuining on from his admission about the problems with his car, Hamilton also shared that his pace on Sunday was the maximum he could get out from the car.
"My pace, I think considering, as I said, I was maximum today. I didn’t have anything else in the car." [via PlanetF1]
"I think I probably would have been overtaken by the Mercedes if I was any further ahead, and I’m hoping the next race, we can somehow get a bit closer." he added.
Lewis Hamilton's start to life at Ferrari has been a roller coaster thus far, with the only real highlight being his Sprint qualifying and race performance at Shanghai during round 2 of the season.
