Lewis Hamilton cast doubt on Ferrari’s chances of winning a race this season ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. On paper, this is one of the venues that could suit the Scuderia.

After previously suggesting that Ferrari could challenge, Leclerc doubts Ferrari could win in Baku. The Monegasque scored a podium in Saudi Arabia, another high-speed street track, and at low-downforce venues like Austria and Belgium.

But Ferrari feel they’re too far back from McLaren to win in normal circumstances. They’ve arguably lagged behind the soon-to-be constructors’ champions at every race this year.

For Hamilton, the main target, results-wise, in the final eight races has to be scoring a first Grand Prix podium. A year without one would be unthinkable for the sport’s most successful driver, particularly given the hype that surrounded his move.

Hamilton has rarely looked comfortable in Ferrari’s SF-25 for a sustained period this season. And perhaps his biggest problem is the brakes.

Karun Chandhok says Ferrari are now giving Lewis Hamilton more confidence on the brakes

Hamilton had used Carbon Industrie brake materials for the first 18 seasons of his F1 career at McLaren and Mercedes. But Ferrari have a long-running partnership with Brembo.

Braking used to be regarded as one of Hamilton’s superpowers, but he’s been losing his time on corner entry this season as he struggles to adjust to the lack of ‘bite’.

Brembo’s boss has confirmed that Hamilton has made complaints, though he also attributes some of the seven-time champion’s problems to his unfamiliarity with Ferrari’s engine braking.

Speaking on Sky Sports’ ‘Paddock Uncut’ show ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Karun Chandhok says a Brembo engineer told him that Ferrari have at last made some ‘good steps’ in addressing this issue.

“One of the engineers I used to work in GP2, who is now at Brembo, working at Ferrari, was talking about the work they’d done with Lewis,” he said.

“Lewis had gone through his whole career at Mercedes and McLaren using the Carbon Industrie brakes. As we know, since he was karting, braking has been a strength for him – something he really puts a lot of emphasis on for his performance.

“Switching that material to Brembo has given him a different feel. It’s less grabby, gives less bite.

“They’ve spent a lot of time trying to give Lewis a feeling that he’s more familiar with, more confident with. They feel like they’ve made some good steps.”

Lewis Hamilton says he barely speaks to one Ferrari F1 legend

Ralf Schumacher says Hamilton’s biggest issue is consistency, not speed. He’s been close to Leclerc over a single lap at the two races since the summer break.

After failing to score points three times in four starts, Hamilton stabilised his season with a P6 in Italy last time out. Historically, Baku is one of his weaker circuits and is perhaps Leclerc’s strongest, so the gap could grow this weekend.

Hamilton is planning to call Sebastian Vettel to share ‘ideas’ about Ferrari, something he hasn’t yet done. Fernando Alonso raced for the team for five seasons between 2010 and 2014, but isn’t often in touch with his former McLaren partner.