Lewis Hamilton has set a modest target for Saudi Arabian Grand Prix qualifying of “trying to get into the top 10” after his Ferrari struggles continued during practice in Jeddah.

Hamilton was only 13th in Friday’s representative second session under the lights at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, more than a second off pace-setter Lando Norris and six tenths back from his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc in fourth.

Aside from a pole and victory in the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint, Hamilton has been clearly outperformed by Leclerc during the opening rounds of his debut season with Ferrari following a blockbuster switch from Mercedes.

Reflecting on his Friday, Hamilton said: “Not the greatest. I think getting the tyres working today was the issue from my side.

“It’s nothing to do with the team. We were just struggling to get the tyres working.”

Asked whether he had hope of improving his form with changes overnight, Hamilton replied: “Normally Saturday goes backwards but there’s not a lot backwards for me to go, so hopefully overnight we make some improvements to the car.

“There were a few bits through the session that felt good. Just once we got to the soft tyre, it’s not there.

“We will make some changes overnight and hope we can come back strong.”

However, when asked about what position he felt he could achieve in qualifying, Hamilton gave a downcast response.

“I don’t know,” he said. “For me, I’m just trying to see if I can get into the top 10.”

Hamilton’s best hope of reaching the final part of Saturday’s qualifying, live on Sky Sports F1 at 6pm, could be to move closer to the set-up Leclerc was running.

The seven-time world champion has repeatedly spoken about being at a disadvantage to Leclerc as a result of the Monegasque’s superior understanding of the car.

Asked if he will converge towards Leclerc’s set-up, Hamilton said: “Possibly. We will work together tonight to see.

“Through both sessions we were trying different things across both cars to converge – wing settings and all sorts.

“So, I’m hoping tomorrow we have a better understanding after analysing tonight and I’m hoping for a better day tomorrow.”

Leclerc expects ‘more performance’ in qualifying

Hamilton’s apparent disappointment was further highlighted by the optimism of his team-mate, with Leclerc saying he is “pretty clear” on his plans for Saturday.

“It was a tricky day,” Leclerc said. “Obviously it’s a very challenging track where confidence needs to be very high in order to perform at your best.

“We changed a lot of the car but it was a very positive day because I learned a lot from it. Once we put everything in the right window, there should be a bit more performance coming out of the car.

“McLaren seem to be very strong again, a lot stronger than us, but never say never. If you put everything together, everything is possible.

“We have done a good job by exploring different options. It’s pretty clear in my head what I want to do, so we are going to go in that direction and I hope it pays off once we get to qualy.”

Sky Sports F1’s Saudi Arabian GP Schedule

Saturday April 19

• 1.15pm: F1 Academy Race 1
• 2.05pm: Saudi Arabian GP Practice Three (session starts at 2.30pm)*
• 4.10pm: F2 Sprint
• 5.10pm: Saudi Arabian GP Qualifying build-up
• 6pm: SAUDI ARABIAN GP QUALIFYING

Sunday April 20

• 1pm: F1 Academy Race 2
• 2.20pm: F2 Feature Race
• 4.30pm: Saudi Arabian GP build-up: Grand Prix Sunday
• 6pm: THE SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX*
• 8pm: Saudi Arabian GP reaction: Chequered flag

*Also live on Sky Sports Main Event

Formula 1 completes its first triple-header of 2025 in Jeddah with the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – No contract, cancel anytime