Hamilton: It’s a lottery [with the brakes]

Hamilton moved to Ferrari at the start of the current Formula 1 season and has been vocal about the challenges of adapting to the methods of his new team after 12 years with Mercedes.

Apparently, one of the aspects of the SF-25 Hamilton is struggling to deal with is the brakes. Ferrari uses Brembo as a brake supplier, while Mercedes procures brakes from Carbon Industrie and it seems Hamilton has been struggling to be consistent with his braking so far.

During both Friday practice sessions, the seven-time Formula 1 champion was vocal about the brakes and later told the media: "I was really, really happy with the car in P1. I felt like we had made a step forward and I was feeling really positive.

"I've literally changed two of the tiniest things that shouldn't have had barely any effect at all. The smallest change we've done this year.

“We had some brake issues that made a massive difference, so that was a fight with that. That's been quite a big issue all year actually. I've never experienced that before. So that's a new thing for me this year," he claimed.

Explaining the situation with the brakes further, Hamilton said: "It's not the transition, it's the performance. It’s a lottery.

"We roll the dice and you put one [set of brakes] on and it works and you put another on and it doesn’t. So I hope tomorrow we figure something out. We're working on it, for sure," the Briton concluded.

Now on his seventh race with Ferrari, Hamilton is yet to gel with his SF-25. He has previously pointed out several differences between Mercedes and Ferrari, which he is having to adapt to, the latter's use of engine braking being one of them, and now it appears the brakes are another issue.

Ferrari has redesigned their steering wheel to make it more familiar to what Hamilton has been used to during his time at Mercedes.

Hamilton's Sprint pole and Sprint Race win in China remain the highlight of his maiden Ferrari season. (Reporting by Agnes Carlier)