Hamilton: I'll give it absolutely everything tomorrow

Hamilton and Ferrari appeared to be in good form from the word go on Friday in Silverstone and were fastest in the first practice session.

And while McLaren was the team to beat, Ferrari remained close to them as Max Verstappen joined the party after Red Bull improved the car ahead of the final practice and qualifying.

And while Hamilton looked good for pole at some point in qualifying, he ended up fifth fastest, blaming a slight error on his final lap in Q3.

However, the seven-time Formula 1 champion insisted on seeing the glass half full; he said: "Pretty decent qualifying. It's generally been a decent weekend so far.

"I'm definitely feeling more comfortable with the setup of the car and the balance of the car," he revealed. "Right up until the last corner I think I was close to second on the grid, but had a bit of understeer and ended up losing a tenth-and-a-bit."

Verstappen came out of nowhere in Q3 and blasted his rivals to take pole. Hamilton commented: "In Q3 run two [Red Bull] always come out of nowhere, and they are always quick. It's not a surprise."

While Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc made it into Q3, they were lucky to escape out of Q1, as Ferrari denied the former another run towards the end of the first stage of qualifying for lack of fuel in the car.

The Briton was naturally not happy about that and explained: "In Q1 the timing was off, and we only had one lap of fuel, and there was still time on the table. It was a big, big risk and definitely was not well executed, and we executed better in the next two.

"I think it will be very, very hard to beat the McLarens or the Red Bulls, but when there is a will, there is a way," he responded when asked about his chances in the race on Sunday.

"I'll give it absolutely everything tomorrow. We are a little bit far behind where I want to be, but with the weather and this amazing crowd," the Ferrari driver concluded.

As for Leclerc, he had to play second fiddle for Hamilton so far in Silverstone, a venue where the latter usually delivers special performances boosted by his home fans.

Leclerc, usually known for his great performances in qualifying, was only good for sixth on the grid but shouldered the blame; he said: "I haven't been good enough.

"Unfortunately, it's been more qualy than not that I found myself here saying, 'it could have been, it should have been' but, at the end of the day, if I don't put the job inside the car and I don't put all my best corners, then I ended up P6 instead of being on the front row.

"So I can only blame myself. I am only disappointed because qualy used to be one of my strengths. I feel for quite a bit now I am performing something in races, but in qualifying I am missing something.

"We have some issues on the car that we are trying to drive around, it's not always easy, but it's not an excuse. You start from sixth, to try and find clear air is going to be very difficult.

"I'll try my best," the Monegasque concluded.

(Quotes from Sky Sports F1)