Lewis Hamilton expressed confidence that the Ferrari he drove at the Dutch Grand Prix has moved into a more competitive position after a series of adjustments were made ahead of qualifying, and he believes the team can still be hopeful for a strong result on Sunday despite starting from the third row of the grid. Ferrari currently sit as Mercedes' closest rivals in both the drivers' and constructors' championships, yet at Zandvoort they qualified a full three tenths of a second off the pole position. The event marked the first race of the season following the summer hiatus, and the atmosphere was charged with anticipation as the field prepared for the high‑speed, undulating circuit.
Hamilton posted the fifth‑fastest time in qualifying, while his teammate Charles Leclerc was sixth. Both will line up behind the Mercedes and McLaren entries, with Lando Norris having secured pole position. Although a fifth‑place start is not ideal, it does represent an improvement for Hamilton compared with his seventh‑place finish in the earlier Sprint qualifying session.
"A completely different session, a completely different car," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1 after the main qualifying round, noting that he managed to edge past Leclerc for the inside slot on the third row with his final lap in Q3. He explained that the car felt superb and consistent during the practice runs, but there were still areas that required fine‑tuning. "We made subtle changes to try and fix those issues and it turned the car on its head – it was terrible through Sprint Qualifying and the Sprint.
I had no confidence in the balance," he said. Hamilton went on to describe how the team introduced a bundle of updates for the qualifying session, essentially giving him a new car to learn on the fly. "We made all these changes into Qualifying, so I was learning a new car again, a new balance which I'm much happier with – trying to progress with it and learning with only like six laps was a challenge," he admitted.
He also acknowledged the power deficit that Ferrari still faces compared with the Mercedes‑powered rivals. "All the Mercedes‑powered cars are ahead and we know we have a bit of a deficit on power, so I think our race pace should be better and the car is better for the race," Hamilton added. The earlier Sprint race on Saturday seemed to confirm that the upgraded Ferrari could be a genuine threat on Zandvoort's twisty layout. Leclerc finished second, just 1.3 seconds behind George Russell, and his decisive overtake on Lando Norris with six laps remaining was the only position change among the top ten after the opening lap.
Despite the circuit's reputation for limited overtaking opportunities, Hamilton refused to rule out the possibility that the SF‑26 could fight for front‑row positions again. "I feel optimistic," he said. "Fifth is not the greatest but it could be far worse, so I'm grateful to be there but of course I wish I was up further ahead. However, our race pace was good in the Sprint.
Charles had good race pace and the car is in a better place. Hopefully with the right strategy and right execution we can challenge the cars ahead." Leclerc's late move on Norris was particularly noteworthy because he was the sole front‑runner to complete the 24‑lap Sprint on the soft tyre compound.
Soft tyres deliver the quickest lap times initially but lose performance more rapidly than the medium compound, meaning drivers must manage degradation carefully. Leclerc had been tipped as a potential pole contender, yet he never truly threatened for the top spot during any of the three knockout phases. "I don't think the conditions played a role," Leclerc explained.
"We changed the power strategies a bit too much throughout qualifying, then in Q3 I had some weird things going on, so we lost a bit of performance there. At no time during qualifying did I have the potential of pole." After Hamilton's late improvement, Leclerc dropped to sixth on the Sunday grid. He commented on the difficulty of overtaking at Zandvoort but remained hopeful that strategy could offset the starting position disadvantage.
"Realistically it will be very difficult to overtake on track but we will do our best and see where we end up. Starting from sixth doesn't make our life easy, so it will be a tough race but the pace is there so I hope we can do something with strategy and offset ourselves to the others," he said.
Team principal Frederic Vasseur took a positive view of the Sprint performance, noting that a multi‑stop race could play to Ferrari's strengths. "The race pace in the Sprint was very strong so we will try to come back," the Frenchman said.
"We had a good comparison between the two tyre compounds in the Sprint which is probably the best preparation we can have for the race. It's very difficult to overtake. It will probably be two or three pit stops which mean everything is open." Vasseur also confirmed that the latest batch of SF‑26 upgrades, including a new floor introduced after Friday's sole practice session, were delivering the expected performance gains.
"It's working as per the plan," he affirmed. "From the beginning of the season, every time we brought something it's worked per the plan. It's a positive side of the development this year.
We are bringing a lot of upgrades at each race, not big ones, so we are not expecting to gain five tenths per race. But it's working as expected." Looking ahead, the schedule for Sunday, August 23, includes the F1 Academy Race 2 at 9:35 am, the Porsche Supercup Race 2 at 10:50 am, and the Grand Prix build‑up starting at 12:30 pm.
The Dutch Grand Prix itself is slated for a 2:00 pm start, with post‑race analysis following the 4:00 pm chequered flag. Fans can watch the action live on Sky Sports F1 or stream via NOW, which offers a contract‑free option with the ability to cancel at any time.
In summary, Hamilton's remarks underline a cautious optimism: the car feels more stable, the Sprint has shown promising pace, and strategic choices could enable Ferrari to challenge the dominant Mercedes and McLaren entries despite a power shortfall. Leclerc's comments echo a similar sentiment, emphasizing that while overtaking will be tough, the team possesses the speed and the strategic flexibility to make the most of the race day.
The upcoming Dutch Grand Prix will therefore be a critical test of whether these incremental improvements can translate into podium finishes and keep Ferrari in the hunt for the championship.