Hamilton shocked: "The fact that we are even getting into Q3 is great"

Lewis Hamilton qualified in seventh today ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, but the Brit had mixed emotions after qualifying. He was unhappy with the way the car performed in the session when comparing it to FP3 this morning but then still had time to explain how he was shocked a Q3 appearance occurred for the team.

"I woke up this morning thinking we are going to be a lot further behind, so, the fact that we are even getting into Q3 is great," Hamilton explained to Sky Sports in the media pen, "we did a lot of work overnight with the engineers and back at the factory, and we made a step forward today."

Car not performing at a strong level

The Brit highlighted the difference in the 'feeling' of the car as one of the main reasons for struggling during the qualifying session, he explained that, "the car was feeling a lot more alive this morning, and all of a sudden we were in a different place than the day before. Then we got to qualifying and the car to me, just didn't feel alive."

Hamilton prepared for the race with set-up

Hamilton also explained his hope for the race tomorrow, as his set-up was aimed more towards the race than qualifying itself: "I think the direction that I went with my set-up, I hope it works well for tomorrow. I tried to set it up for tomorrow."

To finish, he showed his optimism for the race and added that anything can be caught up during the 57 laps, "over a single lap, sixth-tenths you can catch it, it is not an impossible mountain to climb, but that is the positive. I know everyone back at the factory will be working hard, and I know we can close that gap. We need to stay focused and push like never before."