Lewis Hamilton was left visibly frustrated after the final phase of qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix, describing Ferrari's handling of the session as "pretty bad". The Italian team had entered the weekend with genuine hopes of fighting for pole position at their home circuit, but they never truly entered the mix during any part of the knockout stages. By the time the session reached Q3, three Mercedes-powered cars had already set faster times, with Alpine's Pierre Gasly unexpectedly taking the top spot on the grid. Because Oscar Piastri received a three-place grid penalty, both Charles Leclerc and Hamilton will line up on the second row, occupying the third and fourth positions respectively.
That outcome may actually be a small piece of good news for Ferrari, given how poorly their drivers performed in the earlier part of the weekend. In Q2, the Scuderia's two cars were only the ninth and tenth quickest, and Hamilton narrowly avoided an early elimination at the hands of Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto, missing out by just 0.001 seconds. When reflecting on his own qualifying run, Hamilton, who ultimately posted the fifth‑fastest time, explained to Sky Sports F1 that the session was "very, very tough".
He said the car felt strong throughout the practice days and he made no changes going into qualifying, which gave him confidence heading into Q1. "Q1 was solid," he noted, but the pace evaporated once the team waited a long time in the pit lane for the first run of Q2. "For some reason we just didn't have the pace. I'm not really sure why—maybe tyre pressures, tyre temperatures, or something else—so we need to look into that," he added.
Hamilton was even more blunt about the third segment. "Execution in Q3 was pretty bad.
I ended up out in the middle of nowhere with nobody, and when you're following another car you arrive several kilometres faster into a corner, so the braking distances change. It's all about getting into rhythm, and I got really out of rhythm for Q3, run one. Q3, run two, wasn't a terrible lap but the references were all different, and we ultimately didn't maximise," he said.
Leclerc, who qualified third, echoed the sentiment, calling the session "a big struggle" and pointing to a host of background issues that the team had to manage. He admitted that many teams were grappling with similar problems because Monza is one of the most demanding circuits for extracting maximum power from the engine.
"I'm pretty sure if we speak in the paddock, everyone had some issues, because it's one of the most difficult tracks to optimise the power unit on. But that's not an excuse," Leclerc said. He praised Alpine for a flawless performance, noting that they had surprised everyone by delivering a perfect lap. "I'm very happy for Pierre, by the way," he added, before turning his focus back to Ferrari's own task.
"Now it's our job to try and recover what we kind of lost on our own today. I don't think pole was possible but one place better was probably doable and we need to target maximising everything and today we didn't." Despite the setbacks on Saturday, Ferrari remain positioned near the front of Sunday's starting grid and cannot be dismissed as race‑winning contenders.
Mercedes' George Russell is still likely to be the favourite, given his second‑place start, but the Scuderia's upgraded engine package for Monza was intended to narrow the straight‑line speed gap. Hamilton, however, acknowledged that Mercedes still enjoys a measurable advantage on the long straights. "I think we have a really great car," he said.
"It's all Mercedes engines up ahead of us and I think we've done a good job to be as close as we are to them, but they're ultimately gaining several tenths still on the straight. That is what it is, and so we have to just do the best we can." He also expressed hope that future circuits might not rely as heavily on outright power, which could level the playing field.
"We're hoping for some tracks that don't maybe rely too much on power in the future, but I'm really grateful to the guys back at the factory because they did bring an upgrade here, they are really pushing. This is just the situation that we're in," Hamilton added. Leclerc highlighted that strategic energy deployment during the race could still provide Ferrari with overtaking opportunities, especially given the contrasting strengths of the two cars. "On the straights, Mercedes are very strong.
In the corners, we are very strong but we are going to be very exposed on the straights and to attack will be difficult," he explained. "But the deployment could make a huge difference one way or another and give us the opportunity to overtake. We will have to play it smart and see where we end up." Looking ahead to Sunday, the schedule is packed with support races: the F3 Feature Race at 7:10 am, the F2 Feature Race at 8:40 am, followed by the Porsche Supercup at 10:40 am, and a series of build‑up programming leading to the Grand Prix itself at 2 pm on Sky Sports F1. The race will be streamed live via NOW, with the option to cancel at any time.
Fans can also catch additional analysis on Sky Sports Main Event, where the Italian Grand Prix will be dissected in real time, providing insight into how Ferrari might recover from a disappointing qualifying and whether they can translate their upgraded engine into a podium finish despite Mercedes' straight‑line dominance.