Lewis Hamilton admitted it was "hard to watch" Him appear so do

Lewis Hamilton admitted it was “hard to watch” Him appear so downbeat after his….read more

Nico Rosberg, former team-mate and title rival of Lewis Hamilton, has expressed concern over the British driver’s tough transition to Ferrari, saying “there’s something missing” in his current performances. Hamilton endured another difficult outing at the Spanish Grand Prix, finishing sixth despite high hopes of securing his first podium with Ferrari.

Rosberg, speaking as a Sky Sports F1 pundit, said Hamilton appeared unusually subdued after the race, and called the situation “hard to watch.” Hamilton had qualified fifth, equalling his best starting position of the season, and made a promising start by overtaking George Russell into Turn 1. However, the race quickly unravelled. He was soon asked to let teammate Charles Leclerc pass, lost track position to Russell during the second round of pit stops, and was eventually overtaken by Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber following a late Safety Car.

“It was a horrible day for him,” Rosberg commented. “He was just slow out there, which is rare. Usually, Lewis delivers on race day even if qualifying isn’t perfect. But in Spain, he didn’t have the pace, and he doesn’t know why. When drivers have no answers, it becomes incredibly frustrating.”

Hamilton himself described the race as “terrible” in his post-race interview with Sky Sports, admitting he didn’t know what went wrong. On the team radio, he told his engineer, Riccardo Adami, “There’s something wrong with this car, mate. It’s the worst it’s ever been.” Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur later confirmed that an unspecified issue emerged in the car’s final stint before the Safety Car, but provided no further details.

Rosberg pointed out that despite Hamilton’s struggles, Leclerc managed to bring home a third-place finish and another podium, underlining the performance gap between the two Ferrari drivers. Hamilton currently sits sixth in the Drivers’ Championship after nine races, trailing his teammate Leclerc by 23 points. In their head-to-head record this season, Hamilton has only outqualified Leclerc twice and beaten him in a race once.

Reflecting on Hamilton’s broader performance, Rosberg suggested that the former world champion is still trying to adapt to the SF-25 and hasn’t yet connected with it. “He hasn’t found his way yet. It’s like a continuation of last season, which was the first time Lewis showed a sustained dip in form. George Russell beat him then, and now Leclerc is consistently ahead.”

While Rosberg acknowledged Hamilton’s race pace remains a strength—pointing to his impressive drive from 12th to fourth in Imola—he also hinted at the toll of age. “Lewis is 40 now. At some point, processing speed and reaction times decline. In qualifying, even a slight delay can cost you tenths.”

As Ferrari continues to struggle to mount a genuine championship challenge and extend their 17-year title drought, the pressure is mounting on Hamilton to find his rhythm. For now, both his performance and his partnership with Ferrari remain a work in progress.