Hamilton: The car is just so tricky to drive

It was apparent from FP1 that Mercedes had an issue with their car again. The W15 was bouncing all over the place, with both Hamilton and teammate George Russell complaining about the issue.

Hamilton, at one point, asked his team how much was left from the 60-minute practice as he was in pain from all the bouncing, which was not helped by the new track surface, which was also bumpy.

The issue transpired in qualifying for the Sprint race as Hamilton did not make SQ3 and while Russell was sixth, over half a second off the pace.

Reflecting on his day, Hamilton said in Mercedes' Friday report: "It has been a difficult day for me.

"I think the ride on the bumpy surface has been pretty bad for everyone, and it made FP1 very challenging inside the cockpit. We lifted the car during the break and improved the situation, but the pace simply wasn't there when it came to the timed laps.

"The balance is on a knife edge, and the car just so tricky to drive and I couldn't attack any of the corners as I wanted to," the seven-time F1 champion lamented.

"I hope we can move forward from P11 during the Sprint and keep working to figure out how to find the sweet spot of the balance in qualifying tomorrow afternoon," he concluded.

As for Russell, and despite having a better day, still pointed out the issues, he added: "That was a challenging session as the track cooled through Sprint Qualifying.

"Finishing P6 is reflective of where we are right now, at the back of the front pack of teams, and with a pace delta to the next group behind us.

"I enjoy the challenge of Sprint weekends, getting straight into the action, and of course today has also brought the slightly unexpected challenge of a very bumpy track - which obviously is the same for everyone.

"For tomorrow, I will be looking to move forward and using the Sprint to work out where we can improve the car for qualifying and the Grand Prix on Sunday," Russell concluded.