Hamilton questions Ferrari's lack of pace in Austria

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What is F1 TV?F1 GlossaryGet involved2026 RegulationsNewsVideosWhat the teams said – Race day in AustriaHamilton questions Ferrari's lack of pace in AustriaPerez and Bottas reflect on Cadillac issuesPiastri surprised to beat Ferrari after P4 in AustriaPlay1:37DHL Fastest Lap Award – 2026 Austrian Grand Prix 1:32'A bit all over the place' at the start and 'had to chase' - Antonelli on his P3 finish in Austrian GP Alexander AlbonFernando AlonsoKimi AntonelliOliver BearmanGabriel BortoletoValtteri BottasFranco ColapintoPierre GaslyIsack HadjarLewis HamiltonNico HulkenbergLiam LawsonCharles LeclercArvid LindbladLando NorrisEsteban OconSergio PerezOscar PiastriGeorge RussellCarlos SainzLance StrollMax VerstappenAll Drivers Hall of FameTeamsChevron DropdownAlpineAston MartinAudiCadillacFerrariHaas F1 TeamMcLarenMercedesRacing BullsRed Bull RacingWilliamsAll TeamsFantasy & GamingChevron DropdownF1 Sim RacingFantasyF1 25F1 Manager 24F1 PredictF1 ClashF1 Members' AreaMenuFIA if(window.f1MobileDetection.iOSSafari) { var meta = document.createElement("meta"); meta.name = "apple-itunes-app"; meta.content = "app-id=835022598, app-argument=https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/dont-know-why-we-were-so-slow-hamilton-questions-ferraris-lack-of-pace-in-austrian-grand-prix.6lOcYc30QJh6uIq7fSuM2a.6lOcYc30QJh6uIq7fSuM2a"; document.head.appendChild(meta); } {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/dont-know-why-we-were-so-slow-hamilton-questions-ferraris-lack-of-pace-in-austrian-grand-prix.6lOcYc30QJh6uIq7fSuM2a","url":"https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/dont-know-why-we-were-so-slow-hamilton-questions-ferraris-lack-of-pace-in-austrian-grand-prix.6lOcYc30QJh6uIq7fSuM2a","mainEntityOfPage":"https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/dont-know-why-we-were-so-slow-hamilton-questions-ferraris-lack-of-pace-in-austrian-grand-prix.6lOcYc30QJh6uIq7fSuM2a","datePublished":"2026-06-28T17:33:44.714Z","dateModified":"2026-06-28T17:33:44.714Z","headline":"'Don't know why we were so slow' – Hamilton questions Ferrari's lack of pace in 2026 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix","author":"F1","description":"Lewis Hamilton admits \"I don't know why we were so slow today\" after the Ferrari driver could only finish fifth in Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix.","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://media.formula1.com/image/upload/t_16by9Centre/f_auto/q_auto/v1782574639/trackside-images/2026/F1_Grand_Prix_of_Austria___Qualifying/2283577238.jpg"},"isAccessibleForFree":"true","publisher":{"@type":"SportsOrganization","@id":"https://www.formula1.com#organization","name":"Formula 1","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://www.formula1.com/etc/designs/fom-website/social/f1-default-share.jpg","width":"480","height":"120"}}}Lewis HamiltonFerrariAustriaShow more tags'Don't know why we were so slow' – Hamilton questions Ferrari's lack of pace in Austrian Grand PrixDespite challenging towards the front in Sunday's race initially, Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari slipped back in the final reckoning. Lewis Hamilton admits "I don't know why we were so slow today" after the Ferrari driver could only finish fifth in Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix. The seven-time World Champion entered the weekend with hopes of repeating his victory last time out in Barcelona – Hamilton's first with Ferrari – and he lined up third behind team mate Charles Leclerc and polesitter George Russell for the 71-lap race. Having got the better of Leclerc on the opening lap, Hamilton stayed within touching distance of Russell during the first stint but became the first driver in the leading group to make a pit stop for new tyres. Hamilton eventually slipped behind Red Bull's Max Verstappen before moving onto a three-stop strategy after making his second stop under a Virtual Safety Car. Having dropped to seventh, Hamilton recovered back ahead of Leclerc and McLaren's Lando Norris, admitting that he felt a three-stop was inevitable due to the hot temperatures and high tyre degradation. "I don't know why we were so slow today. We really struggled on pace, degradation was really, really high, much worse than anticipated," said Hamilton. "I thought it was going to be like that and I told the team, they said it was going to be a two-stop and I was like, 'I don't think it's a two-stop today, I don't think I'm going to be able to make a two-stop work'. "Big deg in that first stint, trying to hold onto George [Russell] and then every stint, mostly we were just struggling with power." Despite slipping away from the podium, Hamilton has been encouraged by the general performance of Ferrari so far this season, which allowed him to win in Barcelona and claim three further podiums from the opening eight rounds of the season. "Definitely enjoying the battling. Of course, it's not where we want to be but this has generally been a bogie circuit for me," said Hamilton. "It's one of my worst circuits probably, so to get third in Qualifying yesterday I was like, 'that's not so bad', to get fifth today given Charles is usually strong here over the years, I'll take it." F1FacebookXInstagramYouTube© 2003-2026 Formula One World Championship Limited