Ferrari endured the latest testing day of its disappointing 2025 F1 campaign as Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc struggled in sprint qualifying for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Hamilton missed the start of what was supposed to be his last flying lap in SQ2 and missed the start-finish line, qualifying 11th for Saturday’s shortened race.
Leclerc was fortunate to be able to progress into the final part of the session, although a spin in his SQ2 prevented him from following, but the Monaco then finished behind the two Aston Martins in his SQ3, meaning he could only manage eighth place.
The performance halted the momentum built with a relatively encouraging performance in last month’s Austin-Mexico City doubleheader, which saw Leclerc take back-to-back podiums and Hamilton’s best qualifying result of the season.
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Sao Paulo GP sprint qualifying highlights
Reflecting on Friday’s action at Interlagos, Hamilton said: “The team thought we were much faster than we were. I gave it my all. In the end, the most important thing is we weren’t fast enough.”
“It’s hard to say (that we’re going in the right direction) when we’re in Q2, but there’s not much more we can do because we feel like we’re working hard. That’s the way it is.”
Hamilton is yet to score a grand prix podium in his first season with Ferrari, and the seven-time world champion admitted the recent setbacks were a reminder that his campaign was “not going well”.
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Karun Chandhok analyzes Ferrari’s sprint qualifying woes as Lewis Hamilton finds himself under investigation for failing to slow down under double yellow flags
He added: “I’m 11th now so I’ll just have a little fun from there.
“At this point, I think I’m just going to have fun. This year hasn’t been great. I just have to enjoy myself wherever I am. That’s all I can do.”
Leclerc ‘not happy’ with ‘very slow’ car
Leclerc said he was “not happy” with the car and admitted he had little confidence that the team could make significant improvements after Saturday’s sprint, when set-up changes could be made before Grand Prix qualifying.
Leclerc said: “I’m not happy. The car was very slow today. It wasn’t too bad, but we were slow and there are things we need to improve for tomorrow.”
“My first lap in SQ3 was pretty good. I was refused to shift up on the last straight, so it took me about a tenth and a half. I was probably around seventh, but it’s been a tough weekend so far.”
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Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton loses SQ2 due to time-out on flying lap
“There’s nothing we think is out of place in terms of setup. We’ll try something. We don’t know if it’s going to be better or worse.”
Ferrari’s disappointing sprint qualifying result came after the team opted for both drivers to run on only one hard tire for the entire weekend’s solo practice session early Friday morning.
The logic behind such a move is to keep as many strategic options open as possible for the rest of the weekend, but there also seems to have been an assumption that qualifying pace would be competitive.
Brundle: Ferrari is in a double predicament
Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle explained why he found Leclerc’s comments particularly worrying and offered a theory as to why Ferrari struggled on Friday.
“The most painful thing I heard there was Charles Leclerc saying that the car felt really good,” Brundle said.
“If the car feels really good but you’re slow, you’re facing a double problem.
“Ferrari as we know it has to run at very low speeds and I think the dips and bumps here mean they’ve had to pull it up. So it may be very fine, but it’s not fast enough.”
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Lewis Hamilton pushed hard on his old tires and paid the price by spinning off the track at turn 11 during the first practice session for the São Paulo Grand Prix.
The car’s challenging nature was already on display in practice when Hamilton spun late in the session.
Sky Sports F1’s Jamie Chadwick added: “That car clearly isn’t working. Every time the Ferrari replay comes on, you can see that every moment is either frozen or looped.”
“Throughout the weekend, it seemed like a handful. It’s frustrating. They can’t seem to quite point it out either, so they’re pretty disappointed as a result.”
Sky Sports F1 Sao Paulo GP Schedule
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A look back at some of the most dramatic moments that happened at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Saturday, November 8th
1pm: Sao Paulo GP Sprint Build-up
2pm: São Paulo GP Sprint*
3:30pm: Ted’s Sprint Notebook
5pm: Sao Paulo GP qualifying build-up
6pm: Sao Paulo GP Qualifying
8pm: Ted’s Qualification Notebook
Sunday, November 9th
3:30pm: Sunday’s Grand Prix: Sao Paulo GP Build-up
5pm: Sao Paulo Grand Prix
7pm: Checkered flag: São Paulo GP reaction
8pm: Ted’s Notes
*Also held at Sky Sports Main Event
F1’s thrilling title race continues in Brazil, with the São Paulo Grand Prix sprint weekend being broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 from this Friday. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
