Lewis Hamilton likened resolving brake problems on his Ferrari to a “lottery” after “two of the tiniest” changes on his car led to a Practice Two struggle at the Italian team’s home Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Driving in front of the team’s famous Tifosi fans on a race weekend in Italy for the first time since joining Ferrari, Hamilton’s day appeared to start promisingly when he finished within a tenth of the pacesetting McLarens in fifth place on the Practice One timesheet.
But the second session proved altogether trickier as Hamilton posted only the 11th-quickest lap in a hour of running in which the seven-time champion was heard expressing frustration with his car’s brakes several times over team radio.
“P1 was good,” said Hamilton.
“I was really, really happy with the car in P1 and it felt like we had made a step forward and I was feeling really positive.
“I literally changed two of the tiniest things that shouldn’t have had barely any effect at all, the smallest change we’ve probably done this year, and we then had some brake issues that then made a massive difference so that was then a fight with that.
“That’s been quite a big issue all year, actually. I’ve never experienced that before, so that’s a new thing for me this year.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Hamilton wasn’t best pleased after almost crashing into the back of the Racing Bulls
Stating that the issue was not related to him continuing to get used to the different brake material that Ferrari use compared to Mercedes, his previous team of 12 years, Hamilton replied “no” when asked if Friday’s problem could be resolved ahead of Saturday’s running.
He then added: “It’s a lottery! We will roll the dice. You put one on and it works and then you put another on and it doesn’t, and we’ll see.
“I hope tomorrow we figure something out, we’re working on it for sure.”
Team-mate Charles Leclerc, who also reported problems with his car’s brakes during the day, had finished 0.4s slower than Hamilton in the opening session, but was just under two tenths faster than the Briton on the way to the sixth-quickest time of Practice Two.
Leclerc: Ferrari focusing on qualifying pace improvement
After sitting out Thursday’s media day due to illness, Leclerc said he was “feeling a lot better” for his return to the track on Friday – although described his opening session in the car as having been “very tricky” due to various issues with the SF-25 after finishing 12th.
Unlike Hamilton, Leclerc’s second session proved more productive – although he said it highlighted again that single-lap pace was where Ferrari needed to find improvement.
“FP2 we put everything together a bit more and it was feeling better on my side,” he said after clocking the sixth-fastest time.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights from Friday’s practice sessions at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
“But, still, we are lacking performance – and we know. Our weak point at the moment is the qualifying pace and we still need to work on that.”
Asked if he was optimistic they could find extra performance for qualifying to put them in a better starting position for Sunday’s race, Leclerc replied: “To be better than today, yes. To go and take pole, honestly, I don’t think we have got that in the car for now.
“But the race pace was strong, so that’s positive. But it’s also a track where overtaking is very difficult so we have got to focus on our qualifying pace. That’s where we are putting all our effort into and I’m hoping it will pay [dividends] for tomorrow.”
Sky Sports F1’s Emilia Romagna GP Schedule
Saturday May 17
9am: F3 Sprint
11:15am: Emilia Romagna GP Practice Three (session starts at 11.30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.10pm: Emilia Romagna GP Qualifying build-up
3pm: EMILIA ROMAGNA GP QUALIFYING*
5pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Look back at some of the most dramatic moments to have taken place at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
Sunday May 18
7.25am: F3 Feature Race
8.55am: F2 Feature Race
12:30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Emilia Romagna GP build-up
2pm: The EMILIA ROMAGNA GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Emilia Romagna GP reaction
5pm: Ted’s Notebook
*Also live on Sky Sports Main Event
F1’s European season begins with the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
