Lewis Hamilton identifies Ferrari area for improvement as clear goal set

Lewis Hamilton has said Ferrari must improve the straight-line speed of the SF-26 to keep up with Mercedes, which has dominated the start of the F1 season.

George Russell and Kimi Antonelli have taken the three pole positions and three victories across the opening two rounds of the campaign, including the sprint at the Chinese Grand Prix.

The Scuderia is a few tenths adrift of the W17, but both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have been able to challenge the Brackley-based squad early in races, with the Italian team enjoying strong and more flexible deployment soon after starts and restarts.

However, it is not enough to live with the championship-leading duo at this stage of the year, with the Ferrari drivers having finished third and fourth at the Australian Grand Prix and at the Shanghai International Circuit, respectively.

At the latter, Hamilton picked up his first podium for the Prancing Horse, a landmark moment for the seven-time F1 drivers' champion, who reached the milestone at the 26th time of asking.

Reflecting on that achievement, the British driver conceded to media, including RacingNews365, that it did not come in the timeframe he had originally envisaged.

"I started this voyage, and this dream of moving to Ferrari and being on the top step with them, and this podium has taken longer than I had hoped," he said.

"After a difficult year last year, to be able to be a part of developing with them, working with them over the past year, gives me huge pride, and it’s such a privilege to be a part of this brand."

Hamilton has been a reinvigorated figure in F1 so far this season, and has spoken glowingly about his strengthened relationship with the team at Maranello.

Whilst the Ferrari power unit is not yet able to compete with the Mercedes equivalent, the chassis has proven to be strong.

"They provided us a really solid car," the 105-time grand prix winner added, before setting a definitive target for the Scuderia to reach.

"As George [Russell] was saying, we’ve got a great package, particularly through corners, just got to step it up to be able to keep up with them on the straights."