Martin Brundle said he “doesn’t buy” Lewis Hamilton’s explanation that he does not understand the Ferrari car in a cutting analysis of the season so far.

Hamilton finished 31 seconds behind his team-mate Charles Leclerc in Saudi Arabia in another underwhelming result for the 40-year-old.

Martin Brundle ‘doesn’t buy’ Lewis Hamilton explanation

Aside from a sprint victory in China, Hamilton’s form at Ferrari has been patchy at best, with Leclerc beating him in every grand prix of the year so far.

And while the Ferrari is a step behind the frontrunners, Leclerc at least managed a podium in Jeddah while Hamilton was forced to settle for seventh in a race that left Sky commentator Brundle baffled.

“Fred [Vasseur] summed it up, he said it’s been up and down, because there was a time when we talked about in commentary where he was in the mid 1:32s which was bang on the pace,” Brundle said.

“He ended up 31 seconds behind Charles Leclerc, his team-mate. Obviously had a little bit more traffic because he was further down the grid so you can take some off for that but it was up and down.

“I struggle to buy into he doesn’t understand the car. It’s a new car [but] here we are knocking on the door of May, and they’ve had all the preseason stuff and all that.

“So I just think Lewis hasn’t gelled with this car and I don’t think he’s going the right way on the setup.

“I know from the things I’ve heard from Mercedes about how Lewis likes the car in a certain way. Obviously can’t get the car there, where he needs it, so it’s difficult days. But what’s a bit odd is, all of a sudden, he was right there.”

Hamilton is not the only driver getting used to a new car this year and Brundle went back to this race last season when an 18-year-old Oliver Bearman impressed on his stand-in debut.

He added: “Bearman, it took him in a day last year here, but then he wasn’t relearning a car. He was just getting in and learning a car.

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“But [Kimi] Antonelli, he’s got used to working with Bono quite quickly in working with that car. He did a lot of testing last year.

“I’m struggling to buy into that, honestly, but we know Lewis is better. Lewis is faster than that. So something’s not working. Something’s not gelling there.”

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