Hamilton: Ferrari "have taken step backwards"

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has questioned the progress his rivals at Ferrari have made in recent months, speculating that the Italians have taken "a step backwards" compared to where they were earlier this season.

Despite many reports coming out that Ferrari's package is the better one compared to Mercedes on paper, it's been the Germans who have been nothing but dominant since the summer break.

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel won at Spa Francorchamps, but it's been all about Hamilton since, as he won all three races after the Belgian Grand Prix, despite Ferrari being dubbed as the favourites for two of those three venues.

During qualifying, Ferrari made yet another strategic blunder by letting both cars go out on intermediates when it was still dry, before switching to supersofts later when the track did start to get wet. Vettel ended up in P9, although he will be bumped up to P8 on the grid due to an Esteban Ocon grid penalty.

“Ferrari have taken a step back for whatever reason but we’ve not let that deter us from improving the car and stepping forward,” Hamilton was quoted by GrandPrix247 after qualifying at Suzuka.

It certainly is, but Ferrari's constant tactical blunders aren't really helping the Italians, are they?