Lewis Hamilton admitted on Thursday that time is no longer on Ferrari's side this season but hopes he can push on at the Monaco Grand Prix after a spirited fourth-place finish last weekend.
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After switching from Mercedes, where he won six of his seven drivers' world titles, to Ferrari, Hamilton has faced unprecedented scrutiny and pressure and is still seeking his first podium finish after seven races.
He knows too that the team may soon abandon developing this year's car and switch their attention to preparations for 2026 when new power unit regulations are to be introduced.
After a promising display at last Sunday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, where he beat teammate Charles Leclerc for the first time, Hamilton hopes that the upgrades on his car will bring it back to life in qualifying this weekend.
All eyes on 44 👀 pic.twitter.com/absyJjtjBf
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) May 22, 2025
"It's getting late and we're running out of time," he said of his car development for 2025. "But for me it is a foundation year, getting to grips with the team and helping make changes that are needed to navigate to long-term success.
"We need a faster car and I have all the faith and belief we can do it."
A downbeat Leclerc said that has he has little prospect of repeating his emotional triumph for Ferrari last year in Monaco.
He became the first home winner in the modern era last season with a copybook triumph in front of family and friends.
"If you want an honest answer (about my chances), then low," he said. "Because unfortunately our car hasn't been particularly strong in low-speed corners and there's only low-speed corners here in Monaco.
"On paper, it doesn't look like the most promising track for us, but Monaco is so unique and so different that we can have a good surprise once we put the car down tomorrow, which I hope will happen!"
Leclerc has an advantage over most of his rivals in that he grew up and went to school in Monaco and knows the tight, winding streets of the Mediterranean principality better than anyone else.
He added: "I hope we'll discover something new about our car that we haven't seen yet since the beginning of the season.
"Until we get to qualifying and until that lap in Q3, you have the hope of doing something magic because you don't really know where you stand.
"So, I will have my hopes until the end. So, I still have hopes that we can reproduce what happened last year.
"Obviously, it's still very fresh in my mind to come back in this paddock. The last time I was there, we won, and it was a very special moment for me."