David Coulthard says Lewis Hamilton had a ‘told you so’ moment watching Charles Leclerc at Qatar Grand Prix

Follow us on Google Discover

Ferrari’s desperate Qatar Grand Prix weekend continued in Saturday’s qualifying session. Lewis Hamilton suffered another Q1 exit, while Charles Leclerc could only manage 10th.

Hamilton has now been eliminated in the first segment of three consecutive qualifying sessions. He was only quicker than Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.

Leclerc, who has only missed Q3 once this year, progressed to the top 10 shoot-out but he’d already used all of his new tyres by that point. That left him nearly 1.2 seconds off polesitter Oscar Piastri.

Ferrari had already failed to score in the Sprint – the first time both drivers have finished outside the points since the 2021 French GP.

Charles Leclerc’s Qatar Grand Prix spin shows the Ferrari is so ‘difficult’ to drive

F1TV commentator Alex Jacques noticed that pundits Jolyon Palmer and David Coulthard were wincing every time the world feed cut to Leclerc’s onboard footage during qualifying.

“Every single time we go on board with him, everyone leans back in this commentary box,” he observed.

Leclerc suffered a violent spin in Q2 but continued, no doubt thankful for the expansive run-off at the Lusail International Circuit.

Coulthard reckons Hamilton must have felt vindicated watching his teammate’s mishap. There is some disagreement as to who’s to blame for their dismal 2025 season – John Elkann has told the drivers to ‘talk less’ and focus more on their job.

“Hamilton, though, if he was watching that will go, ‘I told you so, look how difficult it is!'” Coulthard said.

The Fred Vasseur comments that show Ferrari haven’t learned their lesson

Alpine driver Pierre Gasly told Hamilton the Ferrari looked ‘so bad’ during the Sprint. The team had the chance to overhaul their set-up afterwards, but at best, they didn’t get any quicker.

The drivers reported that the car generally felt better but lacked performance. Leclerc’s spin, therefore, may have been a result of overdriving.

Fred Vasseur says Ferrari cut off 2025 development early to focus on next year, which is why they’ve fallen to fourth in the pecking order.

But Martin Brundle thinks that explanation doesn’t cut it. He says there are bigger issues at play at Maranello, where the championship drought is about to reach a 19th year.