Lewis Hamilton reveals 'very, very challenging' F1 career first

Lewis Hamilton has explained how difficult it is to understand energy management and battery usage from inside an F1 car.

The Ferrari driver revealed it required "more study" than any other era of the championship he has raced in, underlining the "very meticulous" approach required.

It has been a strong start to the season for the seven-time F1 drivers' champion, who clinched his first podium for the Scuderia at the Chinese Grand Prix.

That milestone at the Shanghai International Circuit involved an enthralling fight with Charles Leclerc, with Hamilton able to outlast his team-mate to reach the rostrum for the first time since the back end of 2024.

The laps-long wheel-to-wheel racing between the pair was in part the consequence of the new F1 regulations. A premium is now placed on energy management, and racing intelligently with the battery charge at a driver's disposal is critical to success.

Hamilton and Leclerc used all the weapons in their arsenal during their battle, including the new overtake and boost modes.

When Hamilton was asked whether it was tough to learn the new way of racing and be a student of it over the winter, he told the media, including RacingNews365: "Very much so. Very much so. I think in testing, actually, I didn’t really get to experience it.

"It’s really more in these three races that we’ve had [Australian GP, Chinese Sprint and Chinese GP] that it’s really become apparent, when you’re surrounded by the cars in the fight, what battery usage is like, and when you have the boost, how to utilise it and all those sorts of things. So, very, very challenging."

Sitting next to the Mercedes pair of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, the Briton highlighted how the SF-26 is still at a considerable straight-line deficit to the W17.

"I mean, I don’t necessarily feel a huge step compared to these guys," he added. "When the boost is there, when you’re within that one second, they’re still pulling away on the straight. Overall, we need more.

"But it is much more study, I would say, than any other era that I’ve had, and you have to be very, very meticulous and pay attention to the fine detail."