Lewis Hamilton admits to "struggling with the car" on Friday in China

Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton admitted that he was "struggling with the car" on Friday during Free Practice, as the Brit finished three places and seven-tenths behind teammate Valtteri Bottas during FP2.

Hamilton ended second in FP1 but was fourth later on Friday in FP2. This might not seem bad, but the Brit was half a second slower than third-placed Max Verstappen and seven tenths slower than Bottas, who set the pace.

The second session also featured a (harmless) spin for Hamilton.

"I was struggling with the car today," the five-time champion told Autosport.

"We've got work to do, particularly on my side as Valtteri looked much more comfortable in the car.

"We're going to work hard tonight to find some tweaks and hopefully come back stronger tomorrow. The car has the pace in it to compete at the front, we just need to find the right set-up.

"It is nice to see how close it is between us, Red Bull and Ferrari.

"As we expected, the Ferraris still look quicker on the straights, but overall it's very close between the top cars and I anticipate that it is going to be the same tomorrow."