Lewis Hamilton says his Ferrari feels markedly better after a series of adjustments made before the Dutch Grand Prix qualifying session, and he remains hopeful that the team can still mount a serious challenge on Sunday despite starting from the third row. The British driver highlighted that the car’s balance has been refined, giving him confidence that the race pace will be stronger than what was seen in the sprint event.
Ferrari continue to sit as Mercedes' closest rivals in the constructors' championship, but at Zandvoort they qualified a full 0.3 seconds off the pole time. The circuit, which marks the first race after the summer hiatus, proved a stern test for every team. Hamilton posted the fifth‑fastest lap, while his teammate Charles Leclerc was sixth, meaning both Ferraris will line up behind the two Mercedes entries and the McLaren duo, with Lando Norris occupying pole position.
Although a fifth‑grid slot may not look spectacular, Hamilton stressed that it represented a genuine step forward compared with the earlier sprint qualifying, where he had only managed seventh. "It was a completely different session and a completely different car," he told Sky Sports F1 after the main qualifying session. "In practice the car felt great and was consistent, but there were always small areas we could improve.
We made subtle changes, and those changes completely altered the car’s behaviour. The sprint qualifying and the sprint race felt terrible – I had no confidence in the balance at all." Hamilton explained that the team introduced a bundle of tweaks for the final qualifying run, effectively forcing him to relearn the car’s handling within a handful of laps.
"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 said. He also acknowledged that the Mercedes‑powered machines still hold a power advantage, but he believes the Ferrari’s race trim will be more competitive. "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 sprint race on Saturday seemed to confirm that the updated SF‑26 could be a viable contender on Zandvoort’s twisty, undulating layout.
Charles Leclerc finished second, just 1.3 seconds behind George Russell, after overtaking Lando Norris with six laps remaining – the only position change among the top ten after the opening lap. Despite the circuit’s reputation for making overtaking difficult, Hamilton did not rule out the possibility of the Ferrari breaking into the front pack during the Grand Prix. "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 execution we can challenge the cars ahead." Leclerc’s late‑race move on Norris was especially surprising because he had been the only front‑runner to run the full 24‑lap sprint on the soft tyre compound, which offers initial speed but degrades quickly. He had been tipped as a potential pole‑sitter, yet he never looked like a contender in 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 dropped Leclerc to sixth on the Sunday grid, the Monegasque driver tempered expectations but remained realistic about the challenges ahead. "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 Frédéric Vasseur took a positive view of the sprint performance, noting that a likely multi‑stop race could work to Ferrari’s advantage. "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 commented on the latest batch of upgrades introduced to the SF‑26, which includes a new floor element that was first seen in Friday’s sole practice session. "It’s working as per the plan," he confirmed. "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, shows the Dutch Grand Prix race at 2 pm, with a build‑up session starting at 12:30 pm. Fans can follow the action live on Sky Sports F1 or stream via NOW, which offers a contract‑free option that can be cancelled at any time. The combination of Hamilton’s optimism, Leclerc’s strategic mindset, and Vasseur’s confidence in the car’s development suggests that Ferrari may yet turn the tide at Zandvoort, challenging the Mercedes‑McLaren duopoly and delivering an exciting race for supporters of the iconic Italian team.