Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton was very positive after qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton has a spectacular record at the Circuit de Catalunya having won at the track on six occasions.
It would have been a surprise if the Ferrari driver was challenging for pole position at the Spanish Grand Prix given his results this season.
The seven-time world champion is yet to finish on the podium outside of the two Sprint Races this season.
However, he’s only 16 points behind teammate Charles Leclerc at this stage of the season, even if they’re both further down the drivers’ championship than they would like.
| RANK | DRIVER | TEAM | TIME |
| 1 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:11.546 |
| 2 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:11.755 |
| 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:11.848 |
| 4 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:11.848 |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 1:12.045 |
| 6 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:12.111 |
| 7 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:12.131 |
| 8 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:12.199 |
| 9 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | 1:12.252 |
| 10 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:12.284 |
Hamilton outqualified Leclerc for the second time this season in Spain with the Monegasque driver choosing to only do one run during Q3.
There was still tension between Hamilton and Ferrari on the team radio during the session, but F1 world champion Nico Rosberg highlighted another problem he spotted while watching his former teammate in qualifying that he thinks is impacting him more than any other driver on the grid.
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Nico Rosberg spots ‘snap oversteer’ while watching Lewis Hamilton during Spanish Grand Prix qualifying
David Croft and Rosberg were singing Fernando Alonso’s praises in Q1 on Saturday during their Sky Sports F1 (31/5 3:09 pm) broadcast before focusing on Hamilton’s latest lap.
Croft said: “Your reaction to Lewis Hamilton with a slower lap than Fernando Alonso, and then Charles Leclerc going a couple of tenths quicker.”
Rosberg: “Yeah, I mean Lewis has just been on the back foot all weekend.
“That Ferrari looked like a handful out there yesterday, more understeer, more snap oversteer than anybody else.”
It’s a credit to Hamilton’s skill as a driver that he was capable of dealing with these issues and still put his car on the third row of the grid.
Leclerc and Hamilton weren’t overly positive about Ferrari’s chances leading up to the race, but there’s an opportunity for both drivers to put pressure on Red Bull and Mercedes in the constructors’ championship.
Mercedes have only scored six points in the last two races, and Yuki Tsunoda’s struggles at Red Bull mean he’s got to try and score points from the back of the grid.
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Lewis Hamilton says his Ferrari ‘felt good’ at the Spanish Grand Prix
Although Rosberg was worried about the understeer and oversteer Hamilton was dealing with in qualifying, his old teammate was more positive in his post-session interview.
He explained: “FP3 wasn’t ideal, but P5 in quali shows the progress we’ve made since the start of the triple-header.
“The car felt good, so I’m going all in tomorrow, aiming for a podium finish.
“The field’s tight, just a few tenths between the top ten, so it’s going to be a proper fight.
“There’s still work to do tonight, but we’ll stay focused and make sure we’re ready for the race.”
Ralf Schumacher doesn’t think Hamilton’s age is an issue and the longer the season goes on, the closer to Leclerc he’ll hope to get.
The Monaco Grand Prix appeared to be an outlier, highlighting the slight lack of confidence Hamilton has on street circuits in his Ferrari this season.
However, on a more traditional track like Barcelona, he could rack up another head-to-head victory over Leclerc.
