Pierre Gasly offered Lewis Hamilton an honest assessment of the seven-time F1 champion's Ferrari after witnessing it up close in qualifying for the Qatar Grand Prix.
Arguably, Gasly knows a poor car when he sees one following the struggles he has endured this season with his Alpine, although the Frenchman pulled off another stunning performance at the Lusail International Circuit to grab ninth on the grid for Sunday's race.
Hamilton, meanwhile, suffered his third consecutive exit from the first qualifying session, with the seven-time F1 champion 18th after lining up last in last weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix, and getting knocked out in SQ1 ahead of the Qatar sprint.
The 40-year-old later revealed a conversation he had with Gasly after qualifying about the SF-25. Speaking to DAZN, he said: "Pierre came up to me afterwards and he said, 'It looks so bad'."
Reflecting on the remark, Hamilton immediately added: "No shit, Sherlock!"
Speaking to the media, including RacingNews365, after qualifying, and asked as to just how bad Hamilton's car looks, Gasly said: "Didn't look great."
As to specifics, he added: "Well, different stuff. He's struggling with different stuff. Not surprised he's struggling for pace when errr...it didn't look a nice car."
It is validation, if it were needed for Hamilton, from a rival driver regarding the performance of a car that has left him bereft on occasion, and wondering in which direction to turn.
After qualifying, Hamilton described his car as lacking stability, downforce, leaving it "on the ragged edge".
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