Lewis Hamilton made one sacrifice at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix that demonstrates his commitment to solving Ferrari issues

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Lewis Hamilton will be pleased that the relentless schedule at the start of the Formula 1 season has finally been and gone ahead of the upcoming Miami Grand Prix.

After the first five race weekends of the season, Lewis Hamilton currently sits seventh in the drivers’ championship.

Considering that many people considered Ferrari to be the strongest team behind McLaren after pre-season, it’s not where Hamilton or team principal Fred Vasseur would like to be.

The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix wasn’t exactly a breaking point for Hamilton, but did highlight the deficit between himself and teammate Charles Leclerc.

Leclerc was clear of Hamilton in qualifying, setting a time more than half a second quicker than the seven-time world champion to start on the second row of the grid.

By the time it came to the race, the Monegasque driver nailed his performance, earning Ferrari’s first podium of the season.

He finished more than half a minute ahead of Hamilton, and while things aren’t going to plan for the 40-year-old right now, he can’t be accused on not putting in the work to try and turn things around.

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Lewis Hamilton’s late nights at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix highlight Ferrari efforts

A report from the Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport has shared more details about Hamilton’s race weekend.

Vasseur privately shared his thoughts on Hamilton’s start to the year with Karun Chandhok before the race weekend in Saudi Arabia, but publicly has fully supported his new driver.

After Sunday’s race, he said: “I’m happy that Lewis is not happy with the result obtained in Jeddah, because if he had been happy with a seventh place it wouldn’t be normal.

“He’s a driver, he wants to get the most – continued Vasseur – but now we have to work together to react.”

However, heading into Sunday’s Grand Prix, Gazzetta reports that Hamilton ‘remained in the paddock until late at night’ to work alongside his team and his engineers to solve why he’s not extracting the same level of pace as Leclerc.

There does seem to be a lot of getting up to speed that Hamilton still needs to do that ultimately can’t be resolved unless he’s sitting behind the wheel of the car.

He will go and work in the simulator ahead of the next race in Miami, and while it’s a hyper realistic tool, there’s no substitute for being out on track.

There was a shift in Hamilton’s mood after the race, and that’s something that Vasseur will need to address.

However, he’s only one positive result away from being back on track, and while victories may be out of sight for now, he’ll still be desperately dreaming of his first podium for the Scuderia.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

Lewis Hamilton struggling with new Ferrari power unit and brakes after Mercedes move

Hamilton was well aware that there would be a lot of different system, procedures and processes that he needed to get used after spending so long racing for Mercedes.

After the race in Bahrain, Hamilton said the ‘totally different’ brakes Ferrari use compared to the Silver Arrows was one area where he knew he needed more work.

Ferrari also require a level of engine braking that Hamilton isn’t used to from his time elsewhere in the paddock.

Unfortunately, Ferrari can’t re-map Hamilton’s power unit to aid him in this situation due to the current engine regulations.

Hamilton put in long hours at Ferrari’s factory heading into the season, and after the race in Saudi Arabia, he admitted he would have to move some things around to spend more time working with the team.

The 40-year-old has achieved all there is to achieve in Formula 1, but that isn’t stopping him from putting in the work to push the boundaries even further.