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The 40-year-old endured another difficult qualifying session for the sprint race in Qatar
Kieran JacksonFormula 1 CorrespondentFriday 28 November 2025 18:35 GMTComments
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Lewis Hamilton could not hide his deflation after only qualifying 18th for the sprint race in Qatar on Friday night.
The 40-year-old British driver, who has endured a torrid debut campaign for Ferrari, qualified dead-last in 20th at the last race in Las Vegas for the first time, on pure pace, in his 19-year F1 career.
A week on, Hamilton fared no better and was knocked out in SQ1 on Friday night at the Lusail International Circuit as he once again struggled to get to grips with his capricious Ferrari car.
A somewhat perplexed Hamilton said on team radio immediately after: “Ah man, the car won’t go any faster.”
Asked about the session by Sky Sports F1 afterwards, Hamilton replied: “Same as always.” Queried further about his prospects on Saturday in the Gulf region, Hamilton simply said: “The weather’s nice.”
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Hamilton is currently sixth in the championship standings and is facing his first season without a podium, ahead of the final two rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
Hamilton labelled his year the “worst season ever” last weekend in Vegas and his mood did not improve after a day to forget in Qatar.
Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri took pole position for the sprint race with McLaren teammate and championship leader Lando Norris only third; George Russell seperates them in second.
As for Max Verstappen, he could only manage sixth on the grid. The Dutchman and Piastri trail Norris in the standings by 24 points.
Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc could only qualify ninth, in another desperately disappointing showing for the men in red.
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