Lewis Hamilton: Our car is strong in the corners, but we're losing too much on the straights

Pulse Sports Team 00:14 - 25 October 2026

After setting the pace in the third free practice session, Lewis Hamilton had to settle for fifth in qualifying ahead of the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.

The most successful driver at the Circuit of the Americas once again pointed to Ferrari's power deficit as the reason behind the Scuderia's qualifying gap. According to the Briton, the Prancing Horse is exceptionally strong through the corners of the Texan circuit, but both he and teammate Charles Leclerc are bleeding significant time down the straights, leaving them powerless against their rivals.

"In the first two sessions we felt very strong and were fully competitive. The car was handling just as well, we didn't make any changes to the setup, and I put in a really good lap in Q3, but the others somehow managed to take another step forward. "I don't know what that's down to. I think we're losing a few tenths on the straights, but Kimi Antonelli drove a great lap. We are still lagging significantly behind Red Bull and Mercedes in terms of power. Our car is clearly as good as theirs, perhaps through all the corners, but we lose that advantage down the straights," Hamilton commented. "Starting position isn't everything here in Austin, but overtaking is very difficult. You need to have really strong race pace to be able to make passes. "It's going to be a long race. During the long runs in practice, tyre degradation was higher than expected. Hopefully, our car will perform well in the race. "We'll do everything we can to put pressure on our rivals; we'll give it absolutely everything," the Briton added ahead of the race.