Looking on the telemetry, (
https://www.f1-tempo.com/) without the journo crystal ball reading, Hamilton's underlying problem is the use of the engine in the corners.
In Jedha qualifying, Hamilton loses considerable time in corner entry and exit by virtue of being in the wrong gear!
Also his throttle use is very different than Charles. Hamilton is more clean, almost binary cutoff with brake and throttle. Leclerc feathers the throttle randomly during acceleration, almost as if he is feeling every throw of the crankshaft of the Ferrari engine.
There are times Charles and Lewis have as much as 20% difference in throttle, with Charles staying on it at 50% while Lewis is at 30%. If we look at entering turns 3 and 4.
Just before turn 3, Lewis engine is 2000rpm higher in gear 7 and Charles in gear 6. Charles has less revs to kill for the corner, so doesn't have to go off throttle too much, which also keeps the platform less disturbed.
So from these first technical corners alone, we see that indeed that he is at a disadvantage by default because he is out of sync with the Ferrari Power Unit.
In another part of the lap, Lewis brakes too hard and kills too much engine speed, also having lower apex speed.
and a following section, goes in too deep again, releases throttle too late and engine revs have a bigger delta, possibly upsetting the car, resulting in less traction on exit and Lewis applies less throttle than Charles exiting.
The last example is the final corner, Lewis comes off throttle later, brakes, later, but his gears are shifting too late into the corner. Charles is has dropped 6 to 3rd and already in third near the apex, while Lewis is coming down from 8th gear to 3rd with more engine speed fluctuation. Charles then has a cleaner corner exit with higher apex speeds.
So long story short, Lewis issue is really how he uses the tools in the car, and how intimate he is with the PU and how to massage the car in conjunction with the PU in the corners. He is truly at sea.
The bright side is, this appears to be mostly studying and practicing in Sim. There is not much evidence to say there is an issue with his reactions, fitness or feel.
The master stroke was dealt by Toto and Mercedes when they prevented Lewis from taking part in the young driver test at the end of the year. That move ensured Ferrari was weakened in the earlier part of the 2025 season.
Lewis just need seat time, and more consultation with the engineers to understand how to gel with the Ferrari PU, and to know what the car needs to optimize the cornering and find pace.
Tyre prep is another thing, but we cannot see this from telemetry unfortunately.
