Lewis Hamilton endured a frustrating Japanese Grand Prix weekend, calling it 'pretty terrible' after dropping from third place to finish sixth at Suzuka. The seven-time world champion had briefly moved into podium contention following a mid-race Safety Car but couldn't hold off Mercedes' George Russell and Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc. Lando Norris also passed Hamilton late in the race as he struggled with pace.

Hamilton's issues stemmed from a 'real lack of power' throughout the race, particularly in the second stint. 'I was P3 and I ended up going backwards,' he told Sky Sports F1. 'I need to figure out if there's something wrong with the car or not.' The 41-year-old had entered the weekend off the back of a fourth-place finish in Australia and his first Ferrari podium at the Chinese Grand Prix, making this performance all the more disappointing.

The race highlighted Mercedes' continued power unit advantage, with Leclerc noting they still have 'a big advantage' over Ferrari. Despite battling back after the Safety Car to finish just 1.8 seconds behind second-placed Oscar Piastri, Leclerc remains third in the Drivers' Championship, 23 points behind Kimi Antonelli. Ferrari's focus now turns to addressing both power unit deficiencies and optimizing car development around their current package.