Lewis Hamilton’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was characterized by the number seven: It was his starting position, his finishing position, and is now his place in the World Drivers’ Championship standings.

But a terse 32-second interview with Sky Sports about the state of the weekend raised further concerns that the swap to Ferrari for 2025 has not panned out as planned.

Lewis Hamilton struggles again with the Ferrari SF-25

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

After over a year of hype, Lewis Hamilton’s move to Scuderia Ferrari hasn’t paid off the way he might have hoped. Rather than battling for his eighth World Championship, he’s scrapping for the lower end of the top-10 while teammate Charles Leclerc soars ahead.

The first race of the season in Australia was challenging, but by winning the sprint race in China from pole position, it looked as if the tides might be turning.

Then came a disqualification for excessive plank wear and a demoralizing triple header where a fifth-place finish in Bahrain marked the driver’s highest finish in a Grand Prix this season.

The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at Jeddah Corniche Circuit was no different; Hamilton complained of balance issues and sliding in both qualifying and the race. When he climbed from the car, it was clear he had been hoping for much more.

More analysis from the Saudi Arabian GP:

👉 Saudi Arabian GP driver ratings: Piastri reward for elbows out, Hamilton sinks again

👉 Saudi GP conclusions: Hamilton issues diagnosed as Piastri puts Norris in corner

After the race, Hamilton also offered a terse interview to Sky Sports F1, where he was quizzed on the challenging weekend.

Asked if he was comfortable behind the wheel of the SF-25 during the race, Hamilton responded, “No. There was not one second [where I was comfortable].”

The brief response encouraged a deeper line of questioning from Sky F1, particularly regarding the capabilities of the car.

“Well, clearly the car is capable of being P3, so Charles did a great job today — so I can’t blame it on the car,” he replied.

Asked if he could pinpoint any reasons behind his own struggles, he could only respond, “No.”

These responses were similar to those Hamilton offered to print media, including PlanetF1.com, after the race.

“There’s nothing to say, ‘Hey, this is the issue,’” the seven-time World Champion admitted.

And without any specific area to pinpoint for improvement, he has little hope that this is a problem that can be solved.

“At the moment there’s no fix,” he said. “This is how it’s going to be for the rest of the year. It’s just going to be painful.”

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