Lewis Hamilton Praises Ferrari's Stellar Performance at Austrian Grand Prix Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton is yet to finish on the podium for Ferrari, although he did win the sprint race in China

Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time champion, expressed his admiration for Ferrari's performance at the Austrian Grand Prix qualifying, with teammate Charles Leclerc securing the second spot and Hamilton landing the fourth. This is their best result in a grand prix qualifying session this season, mirroring their performance in Monaco.

The improved performance comes after Ferrari introduced a new floor, their first car upgrade since the Bahrain race in April. Hamilton acknowledged the hard work done by the team at the factory, stating, "For us to be much closer and be on the second row, and for Charles who is on the front row, I think that's really fantastic."

Although Hamilton was just 0.09 seconds slower than Leclerc, he believed he could have qualified second had he optimized his final lap. He said, "My last lap wasn't perfect, I think that could have been, if I had finished that, would have been second."

Hamilton also praised the operational efficiency of the team during qualifying, deeming it world-class. He added, "That is what we are working towards."

Ferrari's performance comes amidst recent criticism in the Italian media, with two influential newspapers questioning the position of team principal Frederic Vasseur. Hamilton appeared to be referencing this when he said, "Ultimately, we continue to work together, protect each other, block out all the noise and just keep our heads down."

Leclerc was also pleased with his second-place qualifying position, admitting it had been a difficult season for Ferrari in terms of qualifying. He said, "We've always been fighting for P5, P6 in best cases, apart from Monaco. That was a one-off. So, it's good to be starting a little bit further up, and to be straight away with the fast guys, straight from the start."

Leclerc also expressed caution about the new floor, stating that they needed to see its impact on different tracks before drawing definitive conclusions. However, he was optimistic, saying, "It definitely helped us. I felt like there were some steps forward. How much, we need to see it in different characteristics of tracks."

The Austrian Grand Prix will take place on June 29 at the Red Bull Ring, with race start scheduled for 14:00 BST. Coverage will be available on BBC Radio 5 Live and the BBC Sport website and app.