Lewis Hamilton feels talented, confident and comfortable. After Saturday's victory in the sprint race, the seven-time champions are thriving, ensuring they are on the right path with Ferrari, and even in a tough day in Shanghai, the feeling he has grabbed the reins is not undermined.
The long road ahead, but his denunciation of “yapping” criticism after an impressive victory was a story of a man's fight that he feels is just beginning to make some blows.
The commander from Paul in the short-form race on Saturday morning was exactly what Hamilton needed after struggling to finish 10th in the season opener last week in Australia. This was a strong nature of performance that he had not been overly concerned about, and he was unable to perfectly match it with his GP qualifications.
McLaren has once again become ominously strong as Oscar Piastri takes his first pole in Formula One. George Russell's two perfect laps from Mercedes made a ferocious run in second place. Piastri's McLaren teammate Rand Norris was third behind Max Verstappen's Red Bull, and Hamilton was fifth.
Hamilton was three-thirds from Paul, and a small change to the setup made his car a little more difficult to handle, but he saw it again with the equality of taking into account some of the learning curve.
He was far from disappointment as he felt he had built a key point in the sprint. After the victory, he and Ferrari's first victory have been won in a short form, especially since it was introduced in 2021. The 40-year-old hit a critic of his progress with Scadelia, who felt he underestimated the complexities of adapting to his new team after 12 years at Mercedes.
“I feel like a lot of people are underestimating the steep climbs that are joining new teams,” he said. “I heard that the amount of people critics and I heard was advertised along the way, not knowing exactly how long it would take to adjust.
“People just love being negative about any opportunity, and even the smallest thing, they become negative about it. I see certain individuals, people I've admired for years.
Australia wasn't how Hamilton was doing, not in the troubled to begin his new career with Ferrari, but in the troubling tone of his relationship with his race engineer, Riccarded Adami. However, he made it clear from off that adaptation would take longer. His own expectations are probably more realistic than the observer's expectations. However, in Formula 1, a week was a very long time and he had the peculiar determination to step up it in China.
He wanted to play a more practical role in setting up the car, but it was part of the learning process and he felt that interacting with his new teammates was the best way to do it.
“For some reason last week, I didn't feel comfortable with the car,” he said. “I sit down and make sure they do what they need to do. I need to observe how they like to work, not impose.
“This weekend, I immediately slammed Riccardo on Monday and said, “These are things I want to start this weekend. This is the direction I'm happy with.”
Taking the initiative paid off. Sprint poles follow, from there a Little Two Flag victory, Britton appears to be in full control, and his car has a much more manageable ride.
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In a race defined by front tire wear, as his engineers have admitted, it will be key with the clean air of Sunday's Grand Prix, Hamilton. “Well done, Mate, Masterclass in Tire Management,” Adami celebrated, bringing the pair closer together.
Piastri, who wants to claim to be a contender for the World Championship, fought back as strongly as he did last Sunday after a late spin spent a lot of money on him on Australia's home lawn. He naturally celebrated his maiden pole and placed his McLaren in front of him in a race where it proved important to avoid the tire struggle that comes from chasing other cars.
“It feels pretty mega when you plug it in,” he said. “Hopefully clean air will help. After the sprint, I was pretty happy. I feel like we've learned a lot and are trying to use it.”
His teammate Norris, an early favorite of the title, was unable to capitalize on his victory in Melbourne. After a broader progression on the final lap in qualifying, he placed sixth in the sprint, making the mistake worse with a helpless error, and was off again, managing only eighth.
He then canceled his final hot lap in qualifying and realized he couldn't improve. It is essential in these early stages to impose his authority on the championship, and he will recognize that he will allow him a chance to escape from him. But McLaren is likely to be horrifying at the pace of the race again, so he may still make a mark in Shanghai.
Leclerc came in 7th place with Ferrari, Isack Hadjar and Yuki tsunoda, 9th place with RB, Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes, and 10th place with Williams at sixth place with Alex Albon. Esteban Ocon was 11th in Haas, Nico Hulkenberg was 12 in Sauber and Fernando Alonso, while Aston Martin and Carlos Sainz were 15th in Williams, with 13th and 14th in the list.
Liam Lawson of Red Bull had another very poor qualifier, finishing 20th. Pierre Guthrie and Jacques Douhan were 16th and 18th in the Alpine, 17th in Haas, Ollie Bearman and 19th in Thorber.
