The Mercedes driver has faced a challenging weekend as Mercedes has had to work hard to try to overcome the porpoising problems that are holding it back.
But with the team still not on top of the problems with its 2022 challenger, Hamilton was left with no pace in qualifying, as he failed to make it out of the Q1 segment at Jeddah.
Despite a late effort, he was pipped in the final seconds of the session by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll for the final slot in Q2. Hamilton is set to line up 16th on the grid.
Speaking to television after the session, Hamilton complained about a lack of balance which was triggered by set-up choices the team had made.
“Just struggled with the balance of the car. And not where I want to be,” he said.
“It’s something in the set-up. It was looking good in FP3 and we tried to progress in a similar direction.
“Maybe we went too far and then the car was undriveable. It’s so nervous.”
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W13, George Russell, Mercedes W13
Photo by: Carl Bingham / Motorsport Images
With Hamilton having slipped back from the leading contenders over the weekend, and the field looking ultra-competitive, he was not confident of putting on a strong charge in the race.
F1’s parc ferme rules mean that drivers cannot change their car setup between qualifying and the race without being forced to start from the pitlane.
“I’ve got the same car as I had in qualifying, so I don’t anticipate moving that far forwards,” he said. “But I’ll give it everything.”
While Hamilton failed to make it out of Q1, his teammate George Russell had a more successful time as he delivered a lap that got him through to the second session.
Mercedes has faced some struggles to unlock the performance it feels there is with its W13, with the porpoising issues holding it back.
It has yet to find a way to get rid of the porpoising problems without it compromising the pace of the car too much.
