Feisty, confident and feeling vindicated, Lewis Hamilton will, to an extent, be at ease with how he fares in Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix.
After his victory in the sprint race on Saturday, the seven-time champion was energised and assured he is on the right path with Ferrari and even a tough day in Shanghai will not detract from the sense he has seized the reins.
A long road lies ahead, but his condemnation of the “yapping” of criticism after a striking victory was the fighting talk of a man who feels he is just beginning to land some blows.
A commanding win from pole in the short format race on Saturday morning was exactly what Hamilton required after struggling to 10th place at the season-opening race in Australia last week. Such was the emphatic nature of the performance he was not overly concerned he could not quite match it in qualifying for the GP.
McLaren were ominously strong once more with Oscar Piastri taking his first pole in Formula One. Two flawless laps from the Mercedes of George Russell put in a blistering run for second. Piastri’s McLaren teammate, Lando Norris, was in third and Hamilton fifth behind the Red Bull of Max Verstappen.
Hamilton was three-tenths off pole, with minor changes to the setup making his car a little harder to handle, but which he viewed once more with the equanimity of considering it part of the learning curve.
He was, then, far from disheartened, having felt he had made a significant point in the sprint. After the victory, notably his and Ferrari’s first win in the short format since it was introduced in 2021, the 40-year-old hit out at critics of his progress with the Scuderia who he felt had underestimated the complexities of adapting to his new squad after 12 years at Mercedes.
“I really do feel as though a lot of people underestimated the steep climb of joining a new team,” he said. “The amount of critics and people I’ve heard yapping along the way who have just clearly not understood how long it takes to acclimatise. Maybe because they never had the experience or are just unaware?
“People just love to be negative at any opportunity, even with the smallest things, they’ll just be negative about it. I see certain individuals, people I’ve admired for years, just talking out of turn. Clearly, some of them are really just making an uneducated guess about what is going on, with just a real lack of appreciation.”
Australia was not how Hamilton would have wanted to begin his new career with Ferrari, not least in the awkward tone of his relationship with his race engineer, Riccardo Adami. However, he had been clear from the off that adapting would take time. His own expectation perhaps more realistic than that of observers. Yet a week is an awfully long time in F1 and he had a singular determination to step it up in China.
He wanted to play a more hands-on role in the car setup and it worked, part of the learning process as he feels his way into how best to interact with his new teammates.
“Last week, for whatever reason, I didn’t feel comfortable in the car,” he said. “I’ve been sitting back and letting the guys do what they need to do, I need to observe how they like to operate, rather than imposing.
“Coming into this weekend, straight away on Monday I hit Riccardo up and said: ‘These are the things I want to start with this weekend, this is more a direction I’m happy with.’”
Taking the initiative paid off. Pole for the sprint followed and from it a lights-to-flag victory, the Briton looking entirely in control and his car a far more manageable ride.
In a race defined by front tyre wear, which will probably be key in Sunday’s grand prix, Hamilton, in clean air, very much had its measure, as his engineer acknowledged. “Well done, mate, a masterclass in tyre management,” said Adami as they celebrated, each meeting bringing the pair closer.
Piastri, who wants to stake his claim as being a world championship contender, similarly struck back strongly after a late‑race spin cost him dearly on home turf in Australia last Sunday. He understandably celebrated his maiden pole, having put his McLaren at the very front in a race where avoiding the tyre struggles that will come from following other cars could prove vital.
“When you hook it up it feels pretty mega,” he said. “Hopefully, the clean air will be a help, I was pretty happy after the sprint, I feel like we learned a lot and are trying to put that into use.”
Norris, his teammate, an early favourite for the title, was unable to capitalise on his win in Melbourne. Having started sixth in the sprint after going wide on his final lap in qualifying, he compounded the mistake with an unforced error, once more going off and managing only eighth place.
He then aborted his final hot lap in qualifying, aware he could not improve. Stamping his authority on the championship is vital in these early stages and he will be aware he let chances get away from him. However, with the McLaren likely to be fearsome in race pace once more, he might yet make a mark in Shanghai.
Leclerc qualified in sixth for Ferrari, Isack Hadjar and Yuki Tsunoda in seventh and ninth for RB, Kimi Antonelli in eighth for Mercedes and Alex Albon in 10th for Williams. Esteban Ocon was 11th for Haas, Nico Hülkenberg in 12 for Sauber, Fernando Alonso and Stroll 13th and 14th for Aston Martin and Carlos Sainz 15th for Williams.
Red Bull’s Liam Lawson had another very poor qualifying, finishing in 20th. Pierre Gasly and Jack Doohan were in 16th and 18th for Alpine, Ollie Bearman in 17th for Haas, Gabriel Bortoleto in 19th for Sauber.
