Hamilton declares he’s “still got it” at Qatar GP after 2024 F1 qualifying struggles

Photo Credit: Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team
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Lewis Hamilton says that he will fight more in the race if he is in the same position like when he was fighting Charles Leclerc during the sprint for the Qatar Grand Prix.

The 7-time world champion is again quite far away from the top positions. He qualified in P7 for the sprint on Saturday and ended up in P6 at the chequered flag after an impressive battle with Leclerc.

Battle with Leclerc was “nice and close”

Initially, Hamilton had a great start but fell into the clutches of the Monegasque driver in the second half of the sprint. Leclerc made a move down the inside of Turn 1 and they battled it out through the next few corners. The Briton tried to sneak by again but his future Ferrari teammate stayed ahead.

“It was alright,” Hamilton said after qualifying for the main race. “It was fair. Nice and close. I mean I didn’t defend. “I should have defended but I didn’t.

”He was a bit quicker than me and he was probably going to come by anyways. If I’m in the same position again tomorrow, I’ll put more of a fight out for sure.”

Bouncing fixed after sprint, but “I’m slow” at Qatar, says Hamilton

Hamilton explained that the car felt better after difficulties in the sprint race. When asked if him being slow is just a one-off or a general issue, he immediately said that he is generally slow, claiming to be all season long. However, he still believes to still got it.

”No, no. We pretty much fixed the bouncing so it was much better. Pretty straightforward session. Car’s running pretty decent.

”I mean I’m slow. I’m half a second off my team mate in the same car. It’s been all year.

“I know I’ve still got it. Just the car won’t go any faster, I definitely know I’ve got it still. It’s not a question in my mind. [But I’m] looking forward to the end.”

Asked if it’s possible to change him being slow, Hamilton said: ”It’s not possible to change it.”

Hamilton qualified 6th for Sunday’s race, which will be led by teammate George Russell. Max Verstappen received a post-qualifying penalty and starts second.