James Vowles, Williams' team boss and Mercedes' former chief strategist, finds Lewis Hamilton's double Q1 exit in Qatar odd, since he's usually on the pace.

Hamilton's first Ferrari season has been inconsistent, with progress often followed by setbacks. Lately, it's been more of the latter.

Hamilton's Qualifying Struggles in Qatar

After a possible breakthrough with his SF-25 from Singapore to Mexico, even achieving a season-best P3 qualifying in Mexico, he fell outside the top ten again in Sao Paulo, placing 13th, and then was eliminated in Q1 in Las Vegas.

In Sin City, the seven-time world champion was slowest, missing a Q2 spot by over two seconds.

His qualifying didn't improve in Qatar, where he was knocked out of SQ1 with the 18th fastest time, repeating this in qualifying. He was three-tenths off P15 in both sessions.

Hamilton said the car felt good, but the times didn't reflect it.

Vowles, who was important to Hamilton's six world titles with Mercedes, said he found Hamilton's lack of pace strange.

I think he's been on the pace normally, so, strangely, he's this far back, Vowles told Sky F1. Of course, we don't like to see that.”

According to Karun Chandhok, a former F1 driver, it's about car confidence, which Hamilton lacked in Qatar qualifying.

He didn't seem confident or have the grip to push. Here, through Turns 3 and 4, you can hear him hesitate on the throttle. "It's like multiple stabs," he said on SkyPad.

He's not confident enough to just go through and hit the throttle where he wants. At the Turn 6 hairpin, he's losing lap time. A bit of oversteer cost him another tenth on his final run.

Turn 15 is another place where he lost time. He couldn't carry the minimum speed.

Most drivers are just partially lifting through Turn 15. Hamilton's really coming off the throttle. It's frustrating for him.

Could Hamilton End His F1 Career?

His ongoing struggles have raised the question of retirement.

Could Hamilton, with seven world titles, 105 Grand Prix wins, and 104 pole positions, end his F1 career after failing to pass Q1?

Juan Pablo Montoya says no.

"I think Lewis is frustrated," Montoya told F1TV.

I think he's venting. He was composed at the start of the year when he wasn't running well, and people were questioning him.

I think he got to a point where he said, 'I don't care. I'm just going to say how frustrated I am.' I think he still wants to do the job.

In Brazil, he was doing well. If Charles hadn't spun, he would have outqualified him.

So yes, he's still missing pace in the race. I don't think it's the easiest car to drive, and he doesn't need to prove anything, but he loves racing.

So, he's not happy, but he doesn't want to quit now. I think he wants to prove he can still do it.”

Hamilton's contract with Ferrari goes until the F1 2026 season, when Formula 1 will have brand-name cars and engines. The sport will use active aerodynamics with moveable front and rear wings and will also go into a 50/50 split between combustion and electric power.

There have been talks suggesting that F1 could become a thinking man’s game, and that could help Hamilton.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has reiterated that the team won't use team orders in Qatar as long as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are both in contention for the world title. They're currently separated by 22 points.

This stance remains even though Max Verstappen is still a threat, trailing by 25 points. He needs to beat Norris on Sunday to stay in the championship race and could potentially overtake both McLaren drivers for the F1 2025 title.

McLaren's Reason for Avoiding Team Orders

Earlier this season, McLaren held the top two spots in the Drivers' Championship. After the summer break, Oscar Piastri opened a big lead of 104 points over Verstappen. Norris was also ahead, 70 points clear, despite a retirement.

The team was in a strong position, with the only question being which teammate would win the title.

Since the Dutch Grand Prix, McLaren's lead has tightened. Heading into Qatar, Norris leads, with Piastri in second due to having more wins than Verstappen, as they are tied on 366 points.

In Saturday's Sprint race, Piastri won by five seconds over George Russell, with Norris another second behind in third.

This result trimmed the gap between the McLaren teammates to 22 points. Verstappen finished fourth, behind Norris, and is now 25 points behind the lead and three behind Piastri.

This means all three drivers are still in contention for the championship as they head into Sunday's Qatar Grand Prix. A win for Norris would give McLaren its first Drivers' title since Lewis Hamilton in 2008. Anything less could open the door for Piastri or Verstappen.

McLaren isn't yet willing to tell Piastri to let Norris pass to shut Verstappen out of the race. Piastri, who starts on pole position at the Lusail International Circuit, is still very much in the fight himself.

Brown told Sky F1, We're taking it one race at a time. We have two drivers who could leave this race leading the World Championship.

So, how can we do anything but give both drivers an equal chance to lead the championship?

If we get to Abu Dhabi and one driver can't win, then of course we'll ask the other to help.

But while both guys can go to Abu Dhabi as possible championship leaders, it would be crazy to do anything other than let them race in Qatar.

While Brown states that McLaren won't use team orders, they have discussed the possibility with Piastri.

Before the Qatar weekend, Piastri told the media, We've had a very short discussion, and the answer is no.

I'm equal on points with Max and have a good chance of still winning if things go my way.

Brown said that these conversations are normal for McLaren and part of an open relationship with its drivers.

"We talk about everything, and I think that's why we have such a great working relationship with our drivers, Andrea, myself, and the whole team," he said.

We just talk about topics. We don't avoid them. We don't pretend they don't exist.

We talked about it, and we're open and honest.

It's clear we have two guys who can win this championship, so we're not going to change anything until the situation changes.

For now, both McLaren drivers and Verstappen are still in the hunt.

He's like the horror movie character who you think is down and then suddenly appears—you thought he was out! Brown said of Verstappen.

He's incredibly talented, as good as anyone we've seen. We have to ignore him, even though it's hard to do, as we can't control what he does.